


Never Traditional (Rewrite)

by xHookedonKillianx



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Drunk Times, F/M, Mostly Captain Swan, Oliver and Killian have a bromance, Rumple is not being redeemed in this, Sexy Times, With Emma and Oliver being besties from years before, You don't have to watch Arrow, but it's mostly just CS and Olicity, i don't make the rules, it's not for you, other characters are here, so if you don't like that, to understand this story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-03
Updated: 2020-09-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:29:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 53,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23378407
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xHookedonKillianx/pseuds/xHookedonKillianx
Summary: After a person from her past calls with a problem, Emma and Killian leave Storybrooke to help. Alone for the first time in their relationship, they begin to realize things aren’t always the way they seem and sometimes the past can come back to haunt you.
Relationships: Captain Hook | Killian Jones & Oliver Queen, Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Emma Swan, Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Robin Hood, Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak, Prince Charming | David Nolan/Snow White | Mary Margaret Blanchard
Comments: 120
Kudos: 194





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve always wanted to rewrite this story, it was my first CS MC, I was just coming out of the Olicity fandom and wanted to write my two OTPs together. I can’t thank @captainswanbigbang enough for giving me this opportunity. You ladies rock! Also, to @scientificapricot -- I can’t thank you enough for your AMAZING BETAing skills and your flailing. This story wouldn’t be finished without you. <3

Emma taps her pen on the arm of her chair as she stares at the clock on the station wall. She has only a half an hour left until she can close up shop and go home, but it feels like forever. It’s been two weeks since the Snow Queen’s defeat, and for the first time since she moved to Storybrooke, things have been… quiet.

The first week was the worst; they were flooded with frantic calls from Belle about people harassing her at the pawn shop. Apparently, some of the townspeople had felt that since Gold was gone, they could take back their belongings from the Enchanted Forest that still resided there.

That was hard, especially on Belle, who was still dealing with the fact that she forced her husband over the town line on top of dealing with angry townspeople. Even with Emma, Killian, and David helping, it still took four whole days and a few arrests before they all stopped, after Belle agreed to do an inventory of what was in the shop and reach out to everyone.

After that, the calls that did come into the station were semi-normal—Leroy was drunk and acting out, one of the few Lost Boys that were still in town vandalized something, or one of the merry men shoplifted from the grocery store. There were no monsters trying to destroy main street, no monkeys flying around grabbing people off the street, and no evil villains trying to take over the town. It was just… normal.

As normal as an enchanted town with magic can be.

Sure, there are sometimes calls of overgrown dark trees that slap people around and an old man breeding dragons on his farm, but at least there isn’t anyone trying to steal a heart… that Emma knows of.

A chill goes down her spine as she thinks about the last person that almost got their heart stolen.

_I almost lost him._

Gold held Killian’s heart and had intended to kill him and there was nothing Emma could have done about it. She blames herself for not catching on sooner, but she had been so distracted with Elsa and the Snow Queen that she told herself the light that seemed to be missing from his eyes was due to lack of sleep, and the passion that was lacking behind his kisses was all in her head because she was busy… She remembers walking into that tower and seeing him on the ground—it was the first time in her life Emma considered killing someone. The darkness she felt growing inside of her edged to the tips of her fingers and if she’d had just one more second—

Emma shakes her head. She can’t let those thoughts in again, especially since the nightmares have finally seemed to stop.

\---

_Emma wakes up in a cold sweat with her heart pounding in her chest. The dream she just had was so real… so life-like… she rolls over onto her side and bites her bottom lip. In her dream, she had been late to the clock tower and got there just as Gold crushed Killian’s heart into dust._

_She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes in an attempt to fall back asleep, but all she sees is Killian’s lifeless body laying there with his eyes open and cold._

I have to make sure he’s okay.

_Emma jumps out of bed and slips on a pair of her boots before throwing a jacket over her pajamas and racing down the stairs. Her bug sounds louder than normal in the dead of night, but she can only find it in herself to care just slightly; she has to see him. It’s a quick ride from the loft to Granny’s and she’s so distracted that she almost forgets to put the car in park before she jumps out._

_Taking the stairs two at a time, she nearly trips over her own feet before stopping outside of Killian’s door and knocking twice. When he doesn’t answer right away, she tries to tell herself to act rational, that it’s going to take him a moment to wake up, but then her hand is bawled into a fist and she’s banging on his door._

Sorry, Granny.

_It’s on about the fifth bang that the door finally swings open with a shirtless, very_ pissed off _, pirate behind it._

_“What the bloody hell—” Killian’s eyes widen, and he takes a half a step forward. “What’s the matter? Did something happen?”_

_It’s as his face morphs into concern that she realizes how crazy she must look and how ridiculous it was to be there. It’s two in the morning and she just raced across town to wake him up because of a dream._

_“Emma?”_

_His voice breaks her out of her thoughts and she blinks up at him. His hair is flattened, and messier than normal, his eyes—smudged with kohl_ _—are puffy from sleep and there’s creases on his left cheek from his pillow. He’s wearing the skull pajama pants Henry gave him for Christmas, and it would make her heart melt if it weren’t for the complete and utter worry etched all over his face._

_“I’m sorry,” she breathes out with a little shake of her head. “Everything’s fine, there’s no emergency.” Killian’s shoulders sag and Emma bites her bottom lip. “Can I come in?”_

_His answer comes in the form of him stepping aside and she takes a step in with a small smile and looks around. His room looks no different than the last time she’d been in there, except there are a few extra books open on the table, along with a half-empty bottle of rum and an empty glass. Part of her wants to make a smart-ass comment about them since he always likes to boast about how neat and tidy he is, but she doesn’t, just turns to him with a soft smile._

_“I’m sorry I woke you,” she mumbles as he takes a step closer to her._

_“You’ll never hear me complain about a beautiful princess banging on my door demanding my presence in the wee hours of the morning, love.” She goes to lightly smack him in the chest, but instead, he catches her hand and pulls her close. The heat from his body calms her down, and her body melts against his as he wraps his arms around her. “What’s the matter, Emma?”_

_Avoiding his eyes, she reaches up to place her hand on his chest—the coarse hair looking like it’s almost_ _sparkling_ _in the moonlight—and feels the beat of his heart._

Thump, thump. Thump, thump.

_“Maybe I just missed you.”_

_It wasn’t a lie, really. She’s found that whenever they aren’t together, she misses him, and it’s become very frustrating for her._

_Killian smirks and gives her a peck on the nose before saying, “While that is always nice to hear, why don’t we start with the truth?”_

_She begins to play with the charms on his necklace to hide the fact that she’s feeling his heartbeat and shrugs._

_“I had a nightmare and I know, it’s ridiculous, but… I just had to make sure you were okay.”_

_He doesn’t say anything, but simply nods, and they both stand there in silence for a few moments before he finally kisses her on the forehead and takes her by the hand._

_Her brow furrows as he pulls her behind him and he whispers, “Let’s get some sleep, love.”_

_Killian lets go of her hand the moment they are by his bed and Emma hesitates. She hasn’t shared a bed with any man since Neal; even during the year with her fake memories, her and Walsh never slept in the same bed because she always had Henry._

_“Swan?”_

_The nervousness in his voice is enough to make her shake off her hesitation and give him a smile so he doesn’t worry any longer. She places her coat on a chair next to his bed and toes off her boots, while Killian pulls the covers back on the bed._

_They crawl in bed at the same time and as they lay down, Emma’s mind begins to race. Is she supposed to move closer? Does Killian like to cuddle or does he prefer to have his own space? She’s never been a fan of cuddling—Neal’s version of cuddling was him practically laying on top of her while he slept, and Walsh, well, he was a monkey so she tries_ not to remember _much about their time in bed together—but if Killian wanted to cuddle with her… she’d be willing._

_“What’s on your mind, love?”_

_Looking over, she finds Killian on his side, his eyes soft as they move across her face._

_With a deep breath, she looks up at the ceiling and whispers, “I haven’t slept in the same bed with someone since Neal.”_

_There’s a moment of silence and it’s not until Emma finally looks over to him that he gives her a soft smile and whispers back, “I haven’t shared a bed for rest with a woman since Milah.”_

_“What a pair we make.”_

_He smiles before lifting his right arm to invite her closer, and when she lays her head on his chest, he tucks her into his side and places a kiss on her forehead._

_“Aye.”_

_They lay there for a few moments, neither saying a word while Killian runs his fingers through her hair and Emma brushes hers against his brace, until she finally asks in a whisper, “Aren’t you going to ask what my nightmare was about?”_

_He lifts his braced arm, bringing her hand to his lips and placing a soft kiss on her knuckles before placing her hand on his chest over his heart and says, “It’s still only beating for you.”_

\---

It’s been a week since that night and ever since, when Henry’s at Regina’s, Emma stays with Killian, and for the nights that Henry _is_ at the loft, Killian sneaks into her room once everyone goes to sleep. It’s a little crazy that at her age she has to sneak her boyfriend into her room, but there’s also a part of her that kind of loves it. She never got to experience any of this when she was a teenager, and while her boyfriend may be over two hundred years old, his maturity level is sometimes lower than her son’s, so he doesn’t mind, either.

Something about sneaking into the princess’s bed chambers makes him feel more pirate than ever, he had told her.

Although, all they do is sleep, because her and Killian still haven’t had sex yet. Sure, they’ve done other things—that thing he does with his middle finger always ends with her feeling like a puddle of goo, and she’s gone down on him on more than one occasion—but the act of sex they haven’t gotten to yet. Not to say that it isn’t on her mind—especially every time he lightly sucks on her bottom lip—but things with Killian are different. She doesn’t want it to be just another thing that happens between them, another step they take, she wants it to be special… for it to mean _more_. She’s found that she’s been opening up to Killian in ways she never has before, and it feels amazing. So, she wants to wait until they aren’t being interrupted every five minutes, and maybe do it somewhere that isn’t being run by an elder werewolf that can hear every little sound.

Even if it’s driving her a little crazy.

Emma gives an irritated sigh as she looks back at the clock to see that only five minutes have passed. Looking over her desk, she spots the pencil holder and picks it up. It’s round, basically a cup, and she gets an idea. Leaning back in her chair, Emma tilts her head back and places the pencil holder on her forehead. After centering it to make sure it stays, she slowly pulls her hands back and smirks.

_Who needs magic?_

“Bored, love?”

A yelp falls from her lips and she jumps in surprise, which causes the pencil holder to fall and the contents to spill out down her chest. Looking up, she sees Killian standing in the doorway with an amused look on his face.

“I thought pirates were usually loud?”

“Only the good ones learn how to be quiet,” he responds with a smirk.

Rolling her eyes, she leans down to pick up the fallen contents and asks, “How was your day?”

Killian gives a sigh and sits down on the edge of her desk. “Belle and I still have some research to do, hopefully we’ll be able to find something soon.”

Emma watches as Killian’s eyes move down and she frowns. Despite the fact that her boyfriend had no control over his actions when the fairies were sucked into the wizard’s hat, he still felt the guilt of it happening. So, every day while she works, he goes to the library with Belle and they spend their time trying to find a way to get the fairies out of the hat.

Standing, Emma walks over to Killian and works her way in between his legs. “You’re going to figure it out. I know you will.”

Killian wraps his arms around her waist and smiles, though it doesn’t reach his eyes.

“You’re more optimistic than I am, love.”

She shrugs while placing her hands on his chest.

_Thump, thump. Thump, thump._

“Blame my parents.”

Out of instinct, her fingers move to the right side of his chest to where she knows a special tattoo is.

\----

_Dopey is the one that accidentally backs into the cauldron, making it splash and spill all over the floor and Killian’s front. Though Gold’s shop is a decent size, with seven dwarves in it along with Emma, Killian, and Belle, it started to feel a little cramped, and well, accidents happen._

_She’s just lucky it was only cleaning solution Belle had in there and not some potion to turn her boyfriend into a cat_ _or something._

_To his credit, Killian takes it in stride. Simply clenches his jaw and walks into the back with only a minimal growl. Emma gives him a minute, ushering the dwarves out before she goes to check to make sure he’s okay, and that’s when she sees it._

_Killian has unbuttoned his waistcoat and button-down to wipe the liquid off his chest with a towel, and when he’s fanning out his shirt, she sees the dark ink on his right pec._

_“What is that?”_

_Killian looks up at her with his brow furrowed. “What is what?”_

_Pointing to her own chest, she says, “The thing on your...”_

_He visibly tenses and Emma’s eyebrows raise. They both stand there in silence for a moment, before he finally gives her permission to look. Pressing her lips together, she steps forward and slowly moves his shirt to the side, a small gasp leaving her lips when the tattoo is fully revealed._

_It’s a beautiful white swan landing in the ocean, with the water rippling, and on the bottom of the swan, in its feathers, written in black, cursive ink, is_ Emma _._

_“When did you—”_

_“Back in the Enchanted Forest,” he cuts in in a whisper, and she looks up into his eyes. “During the year I thought I would never see you again.”_

_Emma looks back and forth between his eyes as her mouth falls slightly open. It’s the first time she gets the urge to tell him she loves him, to finally say the words out loud instead of thinking them late at night when she’s awake, but she doesn’t, because she’s terrified of what saying them will change. So, instead, she wraps her arms around his shoulders and kisses him with everything she has, hoping that he knows what she is trying to say._

_\----_

Killian chuckles and Emma’s brought out of her thoughts.

“Are you coming over tonight?”

“Aye,” he answers as she steps back to start to close up the station. “Your mother called and informed me she was making dinner.”

She wants to be surprised that Mary Margaret called Killian about dinner, but honestly, she’s not. Ever since everything happened with the Snow Queen, her mother has been even _more_ … understanding than before—if that’s even possible.

She checks to make sure all the windows are locked and turns off the ancient computers before her and Killian make their way out of the station. It’s a short walk to her parents’ loft, but she loops her arm through Killian’s and snuggles close, anyway.

He’s always warmer than any jacket she owns. 

* * *

“Oh, Killian, thank God you’re here,” Mary Margaret breathes out the second Emma and Killian walk through the door.

“Wow, Mom, hello to you, too,” Emma jokes as she slips her jacket off.

Mary Margaret gives her a blank look and places her hands on the island.

“The cabinet in the bathroom fell and your father thinks he can get it back on by himself. He’s in there balancing it on his arm while trying to use a drill gun. I’ve already heard something crash twice.” She takes a deep breath and looks back to Killian. “Will you please go in there and help my stubborn husband?”

“Of course, milady.”

He gives Emma a kiss on her cheek before heading toward the bathroom.

“How was your day, dear?”

Emma shrugs and walks over to the bassinet that holds her little brother. She smiles as he gargles at her and begins to wave his rubber ring back and forth.

“Hey, there, big guy,” she whispers softly before picking him up. “Drive mom and Dad nuts today?”

“Your father is the one driving me nuts,” Mary Margret huffs as she stirs something that’s cooking in the pot on the stove. “I appreciate you giving him the time off, Emma, I really do, but if he tries to fix one more thing around this loft, I might have to grab my bow and arrow.”

“I heard that!” David calls from the bathroom and Emma snorts.

Sitting down on one of the stools, she adjusts Neal in her arms and asks, “What needs to be fixed?”

Mary Margaret turns back to her and waves her arms around.

“According to your father, everything! He borrowed tools from Marco today and decided to go on a fixing spree. Honestly, there’s only so much a wife can take.”

“I was obviously right,” David announces as he and Killian emerge from the bathroom. “Did you see how that cabinet fell?”

“Yes, darling, it had nothing to do with the fact that you decided to check if the screws were tight!”

Killian and Emma exchange a look as he sits down next to her but otherwise stay quiet.

“Emma, will you please tell your mother I know what I’m doing?”

“Will you please tell your father that he should stick to his day job?”

Emma turns Neal so that he’s facing her and speaks directly to him, “Oh, I just love when mom and dad make me a referee, yes, I do.”

Killian chuckles softly from next to her while Neal gargles more and puts his rubber ring in his mouth. Her parents continue to bicker, but Emma can’t seem to mind, because seeing the way Killian interacts with Neal is the most adorable thing in the world. Her little brother laughs at almost everything the pirate does and if he’s not laughing, he’s reaching toward Killian to try and yank at his chains.

Her cell phone begins to ring around the time Killian starts to make funny faces at Neal, and she has to ask him to take it out of her pocket.

“Is it Henry?” David asks as he pours himself a glass of water.

Emma looks at the number and shakes her head.

“No, I routed the calls for the station to my phone, it’s probably that.” She motions to the phone and asks, “Killian, can you answer it and put it on speaker?”

He does as she asks with minimal trouble and for a quick second, she’s reminded of how smart her pirate is and how well he picks up on things.

“Sheriff Swan.”

_“Emma?”_

Her brow furrows as she bounces Neal on her leg, the voice sounds familiar, but she can’t place it.

“Yes?”

_“Holy shit, is it really you?”_

She looks up to see her parents and Killian looking at her in confusion, and she shrugs.

“Uh, yeah, who’s this?”

_“Have you forgotten your husband already?”_

Mary Margaret drops her spatula with a loud gasp while Killian and David’s eyes widen. Emma would comment on how ridiculous they all look, but she’s too busy staring at her phone in complete shock.

“Oliver?!”

_“I can’t believe I got you!”_ Oliver chuckles. _“Damn, it’s good to hear your voice again.”_

Her eyes shoot up to Killian and she winces at the look on his face. He deserves an explanation… they all do. But she can’t explain it to them, not while she’s still trying to wrap her head around what’s happening and why Oliver Queen is on her phone.

“Ollie, give me a second while I take you off speaker.”

_“You got it.”_

Emma stands and hands Neal off to her father before she picks up her cell phone. Looking at the three people before her she opens and closes her mouth a couple times but comes up with nothing.

“I’ll… be right back.”

She races up the steps with the cell phone clutched to her chest, trying to ignore the hurt look on Killian’s face.


	2. Chapter 2

“Okay, Ollie, I’ll call you soon… bye.”

Emma hangs up the phone and before it goes black, she sees the time she’s spent on the phone with Oliver.

Twenty-seven minutes and forty-two seconds.

Giving a huff, she runs her hands through her hair and tries to think of what she’s going to tell three out of the four most important people in her life, because to be honest, she was still in shock about it herself.

But she has to help him, there’s no way she can’t.

Walking down the stairs, Emma forces a smile on her face when three sets of eyes immediately fall on her from their places at the dinner table. On one hand, she’s glad they started dinner without her, on the other, she takes notice to how much of their food has been untouched so she can only imagine how awkward the last half an hour has been.

“Emma,” Mary Margaret starts, her voice laced with concern. “Is everything okay?”

She bites her lip as she places her phone in her back pocket.

“Um, well—”

“You were _married_?” David cuts her off.

“No!” Emma answers before her father is finished. “That’s just an inside joke between us.”

The three of them—Killian more so—visibly relax and she curses herself for forgetting to mention that first. Walking forward, she places her hands on the back of a chair and waits for the questions to begin.

After smacking her husband, Mary Margaret looks back to Emma and asks again, “Is everything okay?”

“Not exactly.”

Killian presses his lips together and looks down at his plate. If the way he’s fidgeting with his rings isn’t a giveaway to how frustrated he is, the way his jaw is ticking would be. She can tell he has questions, but he’s keeping quiet to allow her parents to speak.

“I met Ollie when I first became a bail bonds person. The halfway house I was released to was in Star City and Oliver was the only one that would hire a convicted felon. He helped me get my start…”

“So, he called to see how you were doing?”

Her mother’s voice sounds so hopeful, it makes Emma wince a little.

“He called because he needs my help.”

Killian’s eyes snap up toward her, but his face stays as still as stone.

David is the one who asks, “With what?”

“He needs my help finding someone.”

Killian lets out a breath and his head falls back, she can tell he’s already figured it out.

“Oh,” David begins, his voice a little more relaxed. “Well, we are pretty outdated here in Storybrooke, but we can help anyway we can…”

“Not here,” Emma says, just above a whisper. Mary Margaret and David share the same confused expression and she continues, “In Star City… I have to go to Star City.”

“Emma, you can’t…” Her mother gasps. “The Snow Queen’s curse…”

“I know.”

Her father speaks next, “If you leave you won’t be able to get back.”

“I know.”

“But you’ve already told him you would,” Killian’s voice is hollow, and he tilts his head. “Haven’t you?”

Emma gives him a pleading look and starts softly, “I told him to give me a couple of days.” Killian laughs humorlessly and shakes his head. “Maybe Regina and I can come up with something…”

“Emma,” David starts in a soft tone. “I understand you want to help an old friend, but Regina has been busy with cleaning up all the other things that have happened here, and we all agreed that it was a good idea to keep the curse going until we could fix everything.”

“I know, but I _have_ to go, it’s important.” Emma insists, before she finally sits down.

“What’s so important that you have to risk leaving your family forever? You’ve helped plenty of other old colleagues from here when they’ve called before,” Mary Margaret reminds her and she shakes her head.

“It’s complicated. I can’t really get—”

“Oh, bugger that!” Killian cries out and they all look at him in shock. “If you are willing to cross that town line and risk never coming back, we bloody well deserve to know why.”

Emma has to fight the urge to lash out at him and tell him that it was _her_ business and _not_ his, but that’s the old Emma, and the new Emma is opening up to those she cares about and understands they _do_ deserve to know the truth.

“You’re right.” Killian’s eyebrows raise in surprise and she shrugs. “You guys do deserve to know.”

She adjusts herself in her chair and takes a deep breath before she starts.

“When I got out of jail, I was put into a halfway house in Star City. I was a criminal that had no job, and no money, so they placed me in a house that I could stay at until I could get back on my feet. While I was there, I met this girl, Felicity. She was my roommate. I didn’t mind her, she was quiet and kept to herself, which was great for me because I wasn’t really the sharing type.”

“Oh, Emma,” Mary Margaret whispers, her voice dripping with pain like it always did when Emma spoke of her past.

Emma gives her a reassuring smile and continues, “About two months after I got there, I went back to the house one night and Felicity was in the room shaking… she was terrified. I tried to give her some space but when she refused to leave the house for a couple days, I finally asked her what was wrong. She didn’t talk at first, which was fine, I wasn’t going to push her and understood the need for privacy, but there was just something about her, she looked so… lost.” Emma shivers at the memory. “I figured to get her talking, I’d have to open up a little, so I told her why I had gone to jail. It worked, and she told me the reason she went to jail was because she hacked some government agency.”

All off their eyebrows raise at the same time and Emma chuckles.

“Yeah, she’s probably the smartest person on the planet.” Shaking her head, she places her elbows on the table and leans forward. “Anyway, I knew she was keeping something from me, but I didn’t want to push, so I just let her speak and figured whatever she was hiding was her own business, but she let it slip. She’s kind of a rambler, it’s funny really, and at times she says things that are so off the wall, it takes a second for her brain to catch up with her mouth. She said she took the fall for her boyfriend, Cooper. Well, she admitted to the hacking, but they got caught because of him and she told him to run. The thing was, what she did, or what she intended to do was really minor and stupid. Send out viruses, spam, switch things around, basically just be a pain in the ass to the government, but what Cooper wanted was so much more. He took the virus Felicity made and changed it into something… really bad. I don’t really know the correct terms, but it was bad, like wipe out the government bad, and she didn’t know until after she was arrested, but she still refused to turn him in… she was in love.”

Emma rolls her eyes at the last part, a flicker of bitterness from past pain trying to rear its ugly head.

“Cooper promised to visit her while she was in jail, promised to keep in touch, but of course, like most asshats go, he never did. It wasn’t until after she got released she found out he took her virus, stole a bunch of money and disappeared. He used her.”

She clenches her jaw and takes a deep breath to reign in her anger.

“Anyway, she had been trying to get her life back on track. She was taking online courses and saving up for college… then that night Cooper showed back up demanding she write another virus for him. Apparently the one she wrote before no longer worked. She told him no and he threatened her, so she was too scared to leave the house. She even almost got thrown out of the halfway house because she kept calling out of work and one of the rules is that you have to be employed. So I convinced her to not let him scare her because she didn’t have to do anything she didn’t want to and to go back to work.”

Emma takes a deep breath and leans forward to grab Killian’s glass of rum and takes a large gulp.

“A couple nights later, Felicity’s car was vandalized, we decided to not file a report, but then a few days after that, our room was broken into and her laptop was stolen. Again we didn’t file a report because she said there was nothing on it he could get, plus we couldn’t prove that it wasn’t someone else that lived in the house. Then two nights later, a brick was thrown through our window when we were sleeping.”

Mary Margret gasps and Emma continues.

“I wanted to run, I almost did, but Felicity she’s… she’s just this… _good_ person. And I… I _wanted_ to protect her. So, I stayed and we boarded up the window and decided to wait it out.” Emma takes another sip of the rum. “A week later, I came home from work and Felicity wasn’t there. She was always home before me, doing school work or whatever else she did. At first, I really didn’t think anything of it until it got closer to the curfew of the house. I called her job and they said she had left hours before when her shift ended, so I went out to look for her, only her car was parked outback.”

A lone tear falls down Emma’s cheek and she reaches up to wipe it away.

“He beat her almost to death, I found her in that car _clinging_ to life. Her eyes were swollen shut, her jaw was broken, and so were her ribs, she didn’t even look like a person! Felicity was in the hospital for six months because of her internal injuries and because he had broken her leg so bad, she had to learn how to walk again.”

Emma finally looks up and she sees her mother silently sobbing while David and Killian look as if they were ready to run out and kill someone.

“What happened after that?”

It’s David that asks and Emma swears that the scar on her hairline starts to tingle.

“He, uh, he came by the hospital to look for her. I tried to call the nurses but he got away.” Killian’s brow furrows at her words but he doesn’t say anything and she continues with her lie. “After that, I took self-defense classes because I swore I would never let that happen to me.”

“How is your friend now?” Mary Margaret asks, her eyes pink from tears. “Felicity?”

“She’s great. She got out of the hospital, went to MIT and is currently the head of the IT department for some huge corporation, kicking ass at what she does.”

“But I don’t understand what this has to do with your friend Oliver?” David asks.

“Oliver is the one I called after Felicity was attacked to ask for help.”

There’s a silence that falls over the room and Emma waits. There’s more to the story, more that involves her, but she knows if they know that, they are all going to have more questions and more arguments, and in that moment, she just couldn’t deal.

“And Oliver called because…”

Emma takes another deep breath as her mother trails off and says, “He called because Cooper is back.”

“Is your friend sure he’s back?”

She nods at David’s question.

“Ollie wouldn’t just go on a hunch. Cooper’s wanted in a lot of states, but Ollie’s always wanted to bring him in and have him charged for what he did to Felicity.”

“Imprisonment is too sweet of a punishment for a coward like him,” Killian growls, his right hand clenching and unclenching.

“I agree,” Emma nods. “But Cooper’s offenses are in the modern world, which means modern world justice.”

Neal starts to fuss from his bassinet and all conversations halts. Emma can feel the table start to shake and she knows that it’s Killian. He’s probably bouncing his knee trying to keep himself calm, so she pushes his glass back to him. Killian takes it without hesitation, swallowing down the remaining contents before pulling his flask out to fill it back up.

“Does that poor girl know he’s back?” Mary Margaret asks as she walks back over to the table while bouncing Neal in her arms.

“If Ollie knows, Felicity knows.”

Killian’s voice is dry, and low, “And how would you know that?”

She tilts her head, her lips pressing together to suppress her smile at his not so hidden jealousy.

“Because I’m pretty sure this is something a husband would tell his wife.” Emma watches as Killian’s cheeks slightly tint, his lips forming a small oh before he reaches up to scratch the back of his ear. “Oliver is the one that helped Felicity get her new start…”

A smile pulls at David’s lips. “You introduced them?”

With a small shrug, she explains, “Oliver knows people and I knew he’d be able to help her. He came to the hospital with me a couple times, then he started to go by himself. By the time she was out, it was like they were the ones that knew each other first. Especially the way they would make eyes at each other, though they didn’t want to admit it, well, Felicity did, but Oliver kept pushing her away, trying to protect her or whatever.”

“Sounds familiar,” Mary Margaret sings softly as she rocks Neal.

Emma’s eyes move to Killian’s and he raises his brow at her with a smirk on his lips. Feeling her cheeks heat up, she scratches her forehead and continues.

“It started to leak over into our time together, and I was their go to person to complain to, so, I invited them both out for a drink with me and didn’t show up. They fell in love and were married two years later.”

David and Mary Margaret exchange a look and Emma raises her brows in question.

“It’s just nice to hear that you were giving people their happy endings before you knew you were the savior.”

She smiles at her father’s words and tucks a piece of hair behind her ear.

“Emma, I don’t like this,” Mary Margaret starts again, her voice dripping with concern. “I know you want to help your friends, but this man sounds dangerous.”

“More dangerous than Cora? More dangerous than a fire breathing dragon? He’s just a man.”

“You had magic to help with them!” David argues. “Outside the town line you won’t.”

With an irritated sigh, Emma shakes her head and practically growls, “I can take care of myself.”

“Aye, you can, love,” Killian cuts in. “But that doesn’t make us feel any better about you leaving, especially if you can never come back.”

“I know,” she groans, her hands running through her hair as she leans forward on the table. “I know that, I really do. And I am struggling with this… I don’t want to leave, this place is my home. But if Cooper is back, I _have_ to help. I can’t let them go through this alone.”

They’re all silent and Emma waits for more arguments, but what comes out of Killian’s mouth isn’t an argument, and it surprises her a little.

“If you’re leaving, I want to go with you.”

“Killian…”

“Don’t ask me to watch you walk over that town line again.”

His voice is barely above a whisper, but it’s strong and the tick in his jaw lets her know that he’s feeling a lot more than he’s letting on. If she’s being honest, she really does want him to come with her, because she knows she’s going to miss him like crazy, but on the other hand, she doesn’t want him anywhere _near_ Cooper. She doesn’t want him to get hurt, or worse…

_“I’m a survivor.”_

“Okay,” she mumbles, her lips lifting slightly at the sides.

* * *

It’s not until later when they are back in Killian’s room at Granny’s that Emma finally asks him the question that’s been on her mind since dinner.

“You really want to come with me?”

He stops unbuttoning his vest and looks up to her with his brows raised.

“Does that surprise you?”

She’s suddenly hit with the memory of the last time he said those words to her, when they were surrounded by greenery and she was too scared to admit that their kiss meant a lot more than she thought it would. Just like then, they are laced with pain and she feels instant guilt. Emma hates that she still doubts him, that she still gets surprised when he chooses her over anything else, but she can’t help a lifetime of disappointment.

Killian’s sigh breaks her out of her thoughts and before she knows it, he’s in front of her, wrapping his arms around her waist as she reaches up to play with his necklace.

_Thump, thump. Thump, thump._

“Wherever you are is where I want to be, I hope one day I can make you believe that.”

_I love you._

The words are right there, they are on the tip of her tongue, but they just won’t form. Fear holds her back because if she says them out loud, it would make everything seem more real and she’s not sure if she’s ready for that… not yet.

Emma looks up at him through her eyelashes and whispers, “I hope so, too.”


	3. Chapter 3

“Oh look, it’s the savior and her lap dog. I’m so thrilled,” Regina greets them in a flat tone as Emma and Killian walk into her office.

Emma’s jaw clenches and she has to remind herself that Regina has just lost someone very special to her and she doesn’t mean what she says when she’s a little callous. At least, Emma hopes she doesn’t.

“Hello to you, too, Regina.” Emma responds blandly with a roll of her eyes. She motions to the book open on the mayor’s desk as her and Killian take a seat and asks, “How go's the reading?”

“Nothing new.” She pushes the book aside and folds her hands together. “What can I help you two with?”

Emma looks over to Killian, who gives her a nod of reassurance before she begins a cut down version of the story she told her parents and Killian the night before. It’s just enough so that Regina understands the gravity of the situation, but even with the edited version, Emma feels her anger rising.

“So, this Oliver wants your help in tracking him down?”

Emma nods. “Yeah, but it’s not that simple. I can’t do it from here… Killian and I have to go to Star City.”

“So you want to leave Storybrooke and never come back?” Regina asks with a small smirk.

“Don’t look so thrilled, Your Majesty.”

Regina rolls her eyes at Killian’s response and brushes a piece of hair away from her face.

“Is there a way for us to go without getting locked out?” Emma asks, her voice tight with annoyance.

The Mayor leans back in her chair, looking back and forth between them before she takes a deep breath and stands. Emma and Killian exchange a look before they watch Regina walk over to a desk. She opens a drawer and pulls a small object out, and then closes it.

“What’s that?”

Regina tosses the object toward them and Killian catches it without a problem.

“That,” Regina starts as she walks back toward her desk. “Is the Snow Queen’s scroll. It allows those outside the town line to find us. I found it when I was going through her ice cream shop.”

Emma’s eyes widen. “Seriously?” Regina nods and Emma takes the scroll from Killian to look at it. “This is… perfect. You sure it will work?”

“It might. I can feel the magic coming off of it, it’s the same type of magic that’s clouding the town line. Can’t you feel it?”

With her brows furrowed, she concentrates on the scroll and notices the tingles in her fingers. “I feel… something, yeah, but if I’m going to risk going over the town line, I need a little bit more than _might_.”

Regina shrugs. “We can always go by my vault… I can show you some potions that will help detect the amount of magic in an object.”

Emma blinks. “That would be great.” She turns to Killian and asks, “Would you mind picking Henry up from school?”

Regina makes a noise and Emma looks at her with a brow raised, daring her to challenge her request. Killian has been amazing with Henry, and besides her father, he’s the only other positive male figure he has in his life and while she knows the former Queen and Hook aren’t exactly best mates, Emma also knows Regina cares about what Henry thinks.

Instead of voicing an opinion, Regina rolls her eyes and Emma turns back to Killian.

“S’not a problem, love.” He stands before he leans down to give her a soft kiss on the forehead. “We’ll meet you all at Granny’s for dinner.”

Emma gives him a smile and watches as he turns toward Regina with a wide, sarcastic grin.

With his arms out to his sides, and a half bow, Killian says, “Your Majesty.”

“Captain,” Regina answers back and with a flick of her wrist, her office doors open. When he’s gone, Regina looks back to Emma and asks, “Tell me again why I should trust the pirate with our son just because you’re sleeping with him.”

“Because he would never let anything happen to Henry and you know it,” Emma practically growls. Regina presses her lips together instead of answering and Emma squirms a little in her seat. “And not that it’s any of your business, but we haven’t slept together yet.”

The former Queen’s eyebrows raise. “Really?” Emma keeps her eyes down and she shrugs. It’s silent for a moment and she waits for Regina’s insults, but instead she gets the opposite. "Guess you really care for him.”

“I love him,” Emma whispers, finally looking up at her.

Regina’s eyes soften before she mumbles, “Yes, well, I can understand that.”

“Have you heard from him?” Emma asks after a moment and Regina presses her lips together.

“No.” There’s another moment of silence before she squirms in her seat, emotion flashing across her face as she squares her shoulders and looks Emma in the eye. “I need a favor from you.”

Emma’s brow furrows. “Okay…”

“If this works, if you’re able to to leave, that means _I_ could leave, and that means Robin could—” Regina stops and looks down at her hands for a quick moment before she clears her throat. “I’m going to give you a memory potion and when you get back, slip it to me so I don’t remember.”

Emma blinks.

“You’re going to give it to me _now_?”

“If I wait, your mother will try to talk me out of it with one of her hope speeches and I just…” She blows out a breath. “I don’t want to know there’s a way to get to him. Will you do that?”

“Of course,” Emma answers without hesitation.

For a while, Regina says nothing, and the two women sit there in silence, until the Mayor takes a deep breath and nods to the scroll.

“Well, that’s not going to check itself for magic. Let’s head over to my vault.”

* * *

The scroll works. Emma has her way to leave and her way to come back. The only thing she has left to do is tell Henry. So, when her and Regina go to Granny’s to meet the rest of their family for dinner and she finds him and Killian waiting outside for them, she asks her son to hold back so they can talk.

“Mom!” Henry greets excitedly. “Hook showed me how to cheat at cards, I’m pretty good at it.”

Regina stops inside the doorway of Granny’s to glare at the pirate that’s holding the door for her. Killian simply grins widely before gesturing for her to continue inside while Emma shakes her head and turns back to her son.

“That’s good, kid. Come here,” Emma gestures to one of the tables. “I wanted to talk to you for a minute.”

“Oh, no,” Henry groans as he sits down. “Is there some new evil around?”

She chuckles and shakes her head, “No, no new evil. But something has come up. Do you remember what my job was before I came to Storybrooke?”

“You were a bail bonds person, right?”

“Right. Well, when I first started, I worked for a man named Oliver and we had a friend named Felicity. A bad man went after her years ago when we all first met, it’s kind of how we became close, but, anyway, that man is back and Oliver’s asked me for my help finding him.”

“Can you?”

Emma gives him a small smile. “I’m going to try. But that means I have to go to Star City and I’m not sure how long I’ll be gone for.”

There’s a frown that forms on his face.

“What about the town line? Will you be able to get back?”

“Regina and I found a way.” She leans in and looks him directly in the eye, “Trust me, I wouldn’t be going if there wasn’t a way for me to come back.”

Henry looks unsure for a moment before he asks, “Are you going alone?”

“Hook’s coming with me.”

She doesn’t know why she’s so tense. Henry has been more than accepting when it comes to her relationship with Hook, but there’s something that makes her hesitant.

He appears to relax and she releases a small breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

“That makes me feel better. I know you can take care of yourself, mom, but it’s nice to have someone there watching your back.”

Emma smiles, and they stand to go inside. Just as she opens the door, the bell ringing above them, she says to him, “You know, my friend Oliver would watch my back, too. He taught me a lot.”

“Yeah,” Henry nods as he steps into Granny’s. “But you and Hook are in love, and he doesn’t want to lose you, so it’s better.”

Her mouth falls open at her son's words and she hesitates. How does he know she loves Hook? Does anyone else know? Does Hook know? She thought she was being subtle—Emma looks up to find Killian smiling at her, his cheeks creasing in the adorable way that they do when his smile is wide and her heart skips a beat.

Okay, maybe she _isn’t_ so subtle.

* * *

Just as they are finishing up their dinner, Mary Margaret pats Neal's back and asks, “Do you have somewhere to stay?”

Emma takes a sip of her hot chocolate and licks the excess off her top lip.

“I called Ollie after we found out about the scroll, and he got us a hotel room. I was going to argue with him, but it’s been years since I’ve been to Star City and he knows it better, so it’s best to just let him do it.”

“Tell us more about your friends,” David asks as he hands his wife a towel. “You’ve never mentioned them before.”

“You've always led us to believe you were a bit of a loner." Regina comments.

Emma folds her arms across her chest and shrugs. “I was, for all intents and purposes, but Ollie and Felicity were different. Ollie taught me everything I needed to know about being a bail bonds person, and we had each others backs, but after what happened to Felicity, we all just became close. I mean, I still held them at a distance, and I think they knew that, but we had some good times. I was a bridesmaid at their wedding, and…” She looks over at Henry and smiles. “He was the only one that I told about you.”

Henry’s eyes light up.

“Why did he call himself your husband?” David asks, and Mary Margaret rolls her eyes.

Killian goes tense next to her and Emma snorts.

“We were trailing a skip and we almost got made, so we had to act like we were a married couple celebrating our anniversary.” She lifts her mug to take another sip of her hot chocolate when a sudden memory hits her and she chuckles, “You should have seen the look on Ollie’s face when I kissed him. I don’t know who was more surprised, him or the waiter.”

Though he keeps his face blank, Emma can practically feel the tension leaking off of Killian. There’s a forced smile on his face as everyone around her continues to ask questions, so she ducks her hand under the table and wraps her fingers around his hook.

“How did you guys lose touch?” Mary Margaret asks as she hands Neal off to Regina so she can finish her dinner.

“Life happened,” Emma answers with a shrug. “When they were on their honeymoon, my parole was up, and I was offered a job in Boston. We tried to stay connected when I moved away from Star City, but things got a little hectic for them and I wasn’t the reaching out type. Then I came here… and that was that.”

“Wait!” Henry’s eyes go wide as he sits up. “Star City? Isn’t that where the Green Arrow is?”

“The what?” Regina asks while bouncing Neal on her knee.

“The Green Arrow!” Henry repeats, his lips pulling into a wide smile. “He’s Star City’s very own superhero. He’s so cool, mom, he jumps from tops of buildings and fights crime. He’s _awesome_.”

“He’s dangerous,” Emma mumbles. “I’m surprised he hasn’t been killed yet.”

“He’s too fast to be killed,” Henry boasts as he shows David and Killian YouTube videos of the Green Arrow.

Emma shakes her head and turns back to her mother. She has more important things to think about than some nut that runs around Star City calling himself the Green Arrow.

* * *

Later that night, Emma finds herself sitting on the couch in her parents living room watching a superhero movie with Killian and a passed out Henry, whose head is in her lap and whose legs are across Killian’s. She knows she should probably take her son upstairs and put him to sleep in his bed, but the way Killian is rubbing the back of her neck has her ready to pass out right along with Henry.

She lets out a soft moan and drops her head forward when he hits a certain spot and she swears she could melt right into the couch.

“Feel good, love?”

Leaning her head back on his arm, she gives him a drunken smile, and nods. He moves his hand up to lightly scratch his nails on her scalp. “Keep that up and you’ll have to carry both of us to bed.”

“I’ve carried rum barrels heavier than you.” Emma smiles at him. “What time do you wish to depart tomorrow?”

Emma thinks on it for a moment before she answers, softly, “Star City is about forty five minutes outside of New York so after breakfast is probably best, that way we’ll get there just before dinner time. Would you want to drive for a little on the way there?”

They’ve been going to open parking lots at night and Emma’s been teaching him how to drive, and like most things, he’s excelled at it. After only two times of her explaining things to him, he drove without assistance and better than anyone she knows.

“I can do that. It’s best I get used to driving with the prosthetic, too, though I’m sure it’ll be no trouble.”

“I’m sure, too.” Emma says, causing Killian to smirk at her and she tilts her head. “I’m glad you’re coming with me.”

His lips pull up into a half smile. “Aye?”

“Yeah. I mean, besides the reason that we’re going, it’s almost like we’re taking a vacation. Though traditionally people go somewhere quiet and relaxing.”

Breathing out a chuckle, he says, “Well, we’ve never been ones for tradition.”

“That’s true.” She sits up and places her hand on Henry’s head. “I should get him upstairs, he says the couch hurts his back.”

“I’ll take him, love.” He’s moving before she can protest, slowly removing Henry’s legs from his lap and standing. He reaches down to place his hands under Henry’s arms and murmurs, “Come on, lad, up you go.”

Emma bites her lip as she watches the gentle way the dread pirate Captain Hook handles her son and it makes her throat tighten. He’s always there for Henry, just like he’s always there for her. He cares for Henry in his own way, not just because he’s her son, and it’s something she’ll always be grateful for. She wants Henry to have people that care for him. She wants him to know that he’s loved every day of his life because that was something she craved as a child, and she doesn’t want her son to have the same problems in his adult life that she has because of not having that love. She’s been afraid to admit that she’s in love with Killian because she’s so scared that if she finally allows herself to want love again, it will disappear, and she’s not sure she can handle being that hurt again.

With a sigh, Emma picks up their discarded dishes to take them to the sink and reminds herself to call Henry every day so he doesn’t think she forgot about him. 

“So, you kissed him?”

Killian’s voice makes her jump and she turns around with her hand on her chest in a weak attempt to calm her racing heart.

“Shit!” She hisses. “What did I tell you about sneaking up on people like that?”

He walks around the island, ignoring her question and leans against the fridge.

“You kissed him.”

Rolling her eyes, she folds her arms across her chest and says, “Once, close to ten _years_ ago and it was just to fool a skip. There’s no need to be jealous.”

“Is that right?”

Emma smiles before she walks up to him and places her hand on his chest.

_Thump, thump. Thump, thump._

“Yes, he’s just a friend… family, really. For a couple years, he and Felicity… they were all I had, but I was so broken that I refused to see it. When I told them I was leaving, they were upset, and I couldn’t understand why. Now I do. Funny what insights come as you get older.”

Killian wraps his arms around her waist and places a kiss on her nose.

“It’s because you’re not that lonely girl anymore, Swan. You’ve grown, and that’s a _good_ thing.”

She takes a moment to let his words sink in. It’s true; she’s a completely different person than she was when she first met Oliver and Felicity, and in a way, she’s proud of that. She can appreciate them more now than she did then.

Neal begins to cry just as she presses her lips to Killian’s and she breathes out a small groan. Turning toward her parent’s bed, she walks over to the bassinet and leans over it.

“Emma?”

She looks up to find her father sitting up, but she waves him off.

“I got him, dad. You go back to sleep.”

David nods sleepily before he lays back down and Emma picks Neal up, holding him against her chest as she slowly rocks him back and forth.

“Is he alright?” Killian asks as she walks back into the kitchen.

“He’s fine,” she whispers, her hand running small circles over her brother’s back. “Probably just had a bad dream.”

“Well, we all know about that.”

She moves her lips from the top of Neal’s head and asks, “Are you leaving?”

Killian’s eyes turn soft.

“I don’t have to.”

With a smile, she nods toward the living room and they sit back on the couch. Getting herself comfortable, Emma places her feet on the coffee table and rests Neal in her lap facing them. He’s stopped crying, but his eyes are wide open and he doesn’t appear to be falling back to sleep anytime soon.

“He’s a strapping little prince,” Killian comments, his hand lifting to lightly tickle Neal’s stomach. “He has your nose.”

Emma’s brow furrows. “You think?”

He hums his response and she rests her head against his shoulder. They sit there in silence for awhile, watching Neal as he waves his arms around, gurgling and giggling at nothing and she yawns.

“Hopefully he falls asleep soon, or I’m not going to be able to drive tomorrow.”

“He’s not going to fall asleep just sitting here, love.”

Lifting her head, she raises her brow and asks, “What do you suggest?”

With a smirk, Killian leans forward and takes Neal from her lap. Mirroring her position, he puts her brother in his lap and asks, “How about a story, wee lad? Will that help?”

Neal makes a small squeal in response and Emma smiles.

“I think you got your answer.”

“Aye, it appears I did.” Emma adjusts in her seat to snuggle up next to Killian and places her head on his shoulder again as he continues, “Once upon a time, there was a beautiful Swan Princess named Emma…”

With a smile, she closes her eyes and falls asleep to the sound of Killian’s voice telling her brother their story.


	4. Chapter 4

Everyone comes to say goodbye to them at the town line and it gets really emotional. For a quick moment, Emma wants to call Oliver and tell him she can’t come just so she doesn’t have to leave. But then Killian places his hand on her shoulder and his hook on her hip to softly pull her away, and she forces herself to walk toward her car.

She can go away to help an old friend. Her family will be there when she gets back… 

Killian drives for the first half of the trip, only stalling out in the beginning when he had to merge on the highway, but after that, it was nothing but smooth sailing, or cruising. Emma finds something incredibly erotic about the way he shifts the gear, and when he catches her staring, he quirks his eyebrow up.

“Is there something the matter, Swan?”

Turning her head to hide her blush, Emma shrugs and says, “Not at all. You’re a regular Paul Walker.” His brow furrows and he gives her a side look of confusion, which makes her chuckle. “You’re doing great, better than most, and they’ve been driving for years.”

“There’s yet to be a vessel that I couldn’t man, love.” He looks her up and down from the corner of his eye and smirks. “Though there’s still one out there I’ve yet to get my chance with.”

Her eyes go wide as he presses his tongue to the back of his teeth, and she reaches out to lightly slap him in the chest.

“No flirting while you’re driving a stick, Jones!” 

He chuckles while down shifting as the traffic slows. “Aye, aye, Captain.”

Shaking her head with a small chuckle, she kisses his shoulder before reaching forward to play with the radio. They keep to small talk for a while, with Emma pointing out landscapes she notices, and she writes in his book any that interest him so he can read up more about them later at the library. 

“You know,” Emma starts as she puts his book back in her glove compartment. “If you start to use my laptop, you’ll probably find out more information than what’s in the library back home.”

“I prefer the books, Swan. There’s nothing like the feel of paper between your fingers.”

“Don’t tell Felicity, she’ll be offended,” she snorts. Killian raises his eyebrow and she turns in her seat, bringing her leg up and says, “I should probably come up with a story for them, because it’s not like I can tell them my parents are my parents and the reason they are the same age as me is because they were cursed for twenty eight years.” 

“I would just keep it simple,” Killian suggests with a shrug. “Sometimes less is more.”

“That’s true,” she mumbles, more to herself, as she tries to think up a story.

“You said they know about Henry, correct?”

She nods. “Yeah, I got drunk one night and cried the whole story to Oliver. A while later he asked me if I would mind if he told Felicity after her and I got into an argument about how closed off I was. She didn’t understand why, and I wasn’t really in the sharing state of mind, but I told him I didn’t care if he told her. She's never mentioned anything to me about it, but I'm assuming he told her because she never questioned the way I felt about things again.” Emma closes her eyes and lets out groan, “Shit… I forgot, Ollie hates Neal.”

“They’ve met?”

“No, but you have to remember, the last time I saw them, I was still jaded about what happened.”

From the corner of her eye, she sees Killian give her a sympathetic smile before he says softly, “Bae did a lot of things, but he did love you, Swan.”

She nods before looking out the window. Her feelings toward Neal are still conflicted. She now knows why he did what he did, and she’s moved on from it, but there’s a small part of her that can’t seem to let go of her anger… she loved him, and he abandoned her. Shaking her head, Emma reaches forward to play with the radio and says, “Let’s introduce you to some new music, pirate.”

* * *

“I’m going to _kill_ Oliver!” 

Emma and Killian stand in the doorway of their hotel room—well, what they _call_ a hotel room, but really looks more like a penthouse. On the other side of the room, there are wall to wall windows, with glass doors that lead out to a balcony that gives a beautiful view of the Star City skyline. 

To their left is a door that leads to what Emma assumes is the bedroom, with an overly large black leather couch next to it. There is a glass coffee table in the middle with plants and candles used as a centerpiece, and a white fluffy rug under it. On the right sits a fireplace with a marble finish under a flat screen TV, next to a mini kitchen and a wet bar. On the wet bar is a basket with different cheeses and breads inside, along with cookies, sweets, and a bottle of rum. 

Dropping her bag, Emma stomps over to the basket and snatches up the card with her name on it as Killian breathes out, “Bloody hell,” his eyes continuing to scan the room. 

“‘ _The funny thing about your reading this note’,_ ” Emma reads aloud as she walks back over to Killian, “ _‘is that there is absolutely nothing you can do about it.’_ ” She growls and Killian chuckles before she continues, “ _‘We have a reservation at my club, Verdant. Give your name at the door. See you then.’_ ” Her arm drops and she looks up to see Killian smirking. “I’m really going to kill him.”

“It seems he only wished to thank you for coming to help, Swan.”

Rolling her eyes, she tosses the card back on the bar and presses her lips together. “We could have stayed in a regular hotel, we’ve each had worse.”

“Aye, that’s true.” He nods while looking around before he places their suitcase on the ground and walks toward her. “But perhaps it’s as I said, and your friend only wished to say thanks.”

Killian wraps his arms around her waist and Emma sighs. Oliver has always had money, he was born into it, but he was never one to flash it around and he never was one to buy overly lavish things, so him going to _this_ extreme for a hotel room seems… strange.

“I don’t know,” she mumbles with her brow furrowed. “Something seems off. Like he’s making up for something.” 

“Making up for staying out of contact for years?” 

She looks up at him and he raises his eyebrow.

“That… could be it.” A slow smile pulls at her lips and she asks, “How did you get so smart?”

He smirks, his prosthetic going to her ass and his right hand pressing in the middle of her back to bring her closer.

“Years and years of practice.”

“Hmm, yes, sometimes I forget you’re like over a billion years old.” Killian’s smile widens at her remark, and he pulls her even closer as she lifts her arms to wrap around his shoulders before saying, “You know, it’s only six. That means we have two whole hours before we have to be anywhere… which means we can either unpack our bags and then start to get ready.” He nods and Emma motions to the couch while saying, “Or we can hardcore make out on that couch over there and then rush to get ready when we’ve lost track of time.”

His brow quirks up and the next thing she knows, she’s being lifted into the air and her giggles are ringing off the tiled walls.

* * *

Emma and Killian pull up outside of Verdant a little after eight to find that it already had a long line of people waiting to get inside. Straightening her dress, she walks up to Killian after the valet drives away with her bug and swipes a piece of lint off his shoulder. 

“What the bloody hell is this place?”

“This is the modern world’s less fancy version of a ball.” He raises his brow and she leans in to whisper in his ear. “With _much_ closer dancing.”

He smirks at her words, and his fingers lace through hers as they walk up to the man at the door.

“Line’s down there, sweetheart.”

Emma’s eyes widen and just as she’s about to open her mouth, Killian steps forward.

“We’re here as personal guests to Queen, _sweetheart_.” He clicks the T and the doorman’s mouth falls open only slightly before Killian’s speaking again. “Look it up, Emma Swan and Killian Jones.”

The doorman looks at his clipboard for a moment before he winces and looks back up with a smile. “I apologize, Mr. Jones, Ms. Swan.” He stands and opens the door for them. “Mr. and Mrs. Queen are waiting for you upstairs. If you go inside right there, someone will escort you up.”

Stepping forward, Emma gives him a forced smile and pats him on the arm, “Thanks, _sweetheart_.”

Killian snorts and they walk into the thumping club. There’s another doorman waiting for them before the main entrance, and they bypass all the people in line waiting to pay the entrance fee to be escorted toward the back of the club.

“How is one supposed to converse when it’s this loud?” Killian asks, his voice raised to be heard over the music.

Emma smiles and says, “Conversation isn’t something people come here for.”

She motions to the right where a couple is practically dry humping on the dance floor, and he nods.

“So, it’s a brothel?”

Chuckling, she thanks the person that instructs them to go up the stairs and looks over her shoulder to Killian as she opens the door at the top of the stairs.

“You could call it that, but the only thing you’re paying for is cheap beer.”

“Trust me, Em—” She turns to see Oliver Queen standing a few feet away with a large smile on his face and his arms crossed. “—There’s nothing cheap about what we sell here.”

Emma smiles so wide, it hurts her cheeks and she takes a second to look him over. He’s tall—he’s always towered over her—his dirty blonde hair is cut shorter than it was the last time she saw him, and his eyes are still the pale shade of blue she remembers. The scruff on his jaw is just past the five o’clock shadow mark and he’s _built_. He’s always taken care of himself, but she swears he’s doubled in size. Which is a good thing, because that means he’s going to be able to handle what she’s about to do. 

With a small giggle, she breathes out his name before practically running forward and into his open arms. Oliver meets her halfway only to wrap his arms around her waist, hoisting her in the air for an almost bone crushing hug. 

Sudden flashbacks of her younger years rush through her mind, happy times with Oliver and Felicity that she forgot in her attempt to not be upset about losing something she cared about, and she’s filled with regret. She should have made more of an effort to keep in touch. They were there for her when no one else was, and she just left…

“Oliver, stop hogging her!” 

Emma looks up at the voice to see Felicity with her thick framed glasses and her blonde hair in a ponytail bouncing on her feet and just as Oliver puts her down. There’s a high pitch squeal before she’s being pulled into the other blonde’s arms.

“You’re here!” Felicity cries out as they hug. “I can’t believe you’re actually here!” The tears in Emma’s eyes are hard to hold back and she bites her bottom lip. Felicity pulls back, keeping her hands on Emma’s arms and says, “Oh my God, look at you! You haven’t changed one bit!”

“Neither have you!” Emma laughs. “It’s like you haven’t aged at all! Wait, did you invent some microchip that keeps people from aging?”

Felicity giggles and Oliver cuts in, “Seriously, Em. You look just the same as you did when you were twenty-three.”

“Well, I wish I could say the same about you.” Oliver’s brows raise at Emma’s words and she smacks him in the arm. “Hello, biceps! You know, anabolic steroids are really bad for you.” He looks down and she swears she can see his cheeks tint a little. “Christ, your arms are like tree trunks! Felicity, how do you find shirts that fit him?”

“I don’t,” she answers with a wink and Emma laughs.

From behind her, she feels Killian approach and she reaches back to wrap her arm around his waist. “Killian, these are my friends. This is Oliver Queen…”

Both men hold out their hands and exchange a handshake.

“Good to meet you.”

“Aye, you too, mate.”

“And Felicity Queen,” Emma continues.

She sticks her hand out next which Killian also accepts.

“Pleasure, lass.”

“It’s nice to meet you.”

“Oliver, Felicity,” Emma starts with a smile, her arm tightening around his waist. “This is Killian, my boyfriend.” 

Both Oliver and Felicity’s jaws drop, and Emma rolls her eyes.

“Boyfriend?!” Felicity gasps after a moment of silence.

Emma sighs. “Mhm.”

“Like, actual dating-holding-hands-in-a-committed-relationship _boyfriend_?” Oliver asks and before Emma can answer, he turns to Killian and asks in a shocked voice, “Oh my god, what is that even like?”

“Hey!” Emma cries out while Killian chuckles.

“Can I hug you?”

Killian’s eyes widen at Felicity’s request and Emma groans while the blonde hugs her boyfriend.

“You guys are being a little ridiculous.”

“I want to learn more about Killian!” Felicity exclaims as she loops her arm through Killian’s and pulls him forward. “I have so many questions.”

“You have a _boyfriend_?!” Oliver hisses.

“Yes!”

“A boyfriend?”

Emma clenches her jaw. “How many more times are you going to repeat it before it sinks in?”

They begin to walk forward, and Oliver says, “We’re going to talk about this.”

“No, we’re not!” 

“Yes, we are!”

“No!”

“Yes!”

“No!”

“Children!” Emma and Oliver look up at Felicity’s growl to see her and Killian sitting on the couch in the middle of the room. “Enough bickering, come and have a drink.”

Oliver wiggles his finger at her and Emma smacks it away with a stern look before they each take a seat on one of the lounge chairs. 

“They bicker worse than siblings,” Felicity sighs with a shake of her head before she turns back to Killian. “I have to apologize for our behavior, the last time we saw Emma she was so anti… well, _everything_.”

Killian chuckles. “Aye, I seem to recall that girl, as well.”

Emma gives him a look and he winks at her, which causes her to lightly blush.

_Damn him._

* * *

It’s been a long time since Emma remembers having so much fun. Her, Oliver and Felicity fall right back into their friendship, while Killian fits in perfectly. It’s as if he’s known the couple as long as her and it warms her heart to see him getting along with people from her past. 

_He really is the best._

“Oh my god, Emma!” Felicity gasps from next to her on the couch as she looks at the picture of Henry on Emma’s phone. “He’s so handsome!”

“He showed up on my doorstep three years ago. _‘My name is Henry, I’m your son.’_ ” Emma smiles at the memory before reaching over to swipe to show Felicity another picture. “This is his adoptive mother, Regina. We didn’t really get along at first, things were… complicated. But now we’re friends. I really have to praise her; she did an amazing job raising him.”

Felicity beams before she rushes over to where Killian and Oliver are playing pool to show him the picture of Henry. Following her friend, Emma walks up and smiles as Killian presses a light kiss to her cheek.

Oliver’s head snaps up to her. “You met your son? Em, that’s amazing!”

“He’s an amazing, lad,” Killian boasts. “Just like his mum.”

Emma blushes.

“So, what about you two?” she asks while Killian leans against the pool table. “Planning for any kids in the middle of owning a club and running a multimillion-dollar tech company?”

Oliver and Felicity smile at each other and Emma’s eyes widen.

“No way! When? How many?!”

“Just one,” Oliver chuckles while he pulls his own phone out of his pocket. “Her name is Mia Moria Queen, she’s four—”

“And she looks _just_ like her father!” Felicity interrupts while Emma takes Oliver’s phone.

On the screen, there’s a picture of the most adorable little girl she’s ever seen holding a stuffed, white unicorn. 

“She’s gorgeous, and wow, you’re not kidding! Ollie, she does look just like you!”

“Aye,” Killian agrees from behind her. “That’s a precious little princess you two have there.”

“She gets all the looks from her mother.”

Emma looks up in time to see Oliver press a kiss to his wife’s temple and she can’t help but smile. It’s like they’re still newlyweds, and it fills her with hope that maybe one day that could be her and Killian. 

Handing Oliver back his phone, she says, "She's too cute, guys."

“You two will have to come over for dinner while you’re in town so you can meet.” Felicity insists. “She’s in this super cute phase where _everything_ is princess related. We’ve held five grand balls this month.”

“Emma loves grand balls,” Killian responds with a smirk before he moves to take his shot on the pool table. “She’s a helluva dancer.”

“I had a good partner.”

Just after he hits the cue ball, Killian winks at her and she feels her cheeks heat up before she takes another sip of her drink. 

_It’s going to be a long night._

* * *

Later, Emma and Killian are sitting at the mini bar while Oliver and Felicity stand behind it mixing drinks, when she asks, “So, how do you know he’s back?” The couple look at each other and Emma shrugs, “Come on, someone had to bring it up.”

Killian gives her a reassuring smile while Oliver pours another glass of rum, and Felicity slides her phone across the table to Emma. Picking it up, she leans over so Killian can see the screen and goes through each message.

**Hello, sweetness.**

**I’m going to need you to do something for me.**

**Don’t think that just because you’re married to Queen I won’t get you. You screwed me over years ago and now you’re going to pay. Keep your mouth shut and no one will get hurt.**

Emma hates the way her stomach flips at the last part of his message and the sight of red brick flashes through her mind. Shaking her head, she looks over at Killian to find him clenching his jaw and tapping his fingers against his glass. 

“And you haven’t been able to locate him?” Killian asks while she slides the phone back. 

“Not a trace,” Oliver practically growls. 

“I don’t understand,” Emma mumbles. “Half the tricks I learned for finding someone are from you guys.”

“He’s gotten smart,” Felicity explains with a shrug. “He’s wanted, so he’s staying off the grid, and the number he sent those messages from are from a burner phone, paid with cash.”

Emma’s brow furrows as she takes a sip of her drink.

“Does he have any known associates in town? Family? Someone he would stay with?”

Oliver shakes his head. “His father was never around, and his mother passed away years ago. He was an only child and there are no friends that we are aware of.”

“It’s like he’s a ghost.” Felicity’s voice is small, and Emma doesn’t miss the way Oliver places his hand over hers in comfort.

“Well, lass, we’re here to help,” Killian says after a moment with a small smile. “And if there’s one thing I know about Emma, it’s that she never fails.”


	5. Chapter 5

It’s a little after one in the morning when the four of them decide to call it a night. Emma is having so much fun, and she wants to convince them to stay, but then she sees how Felicity can’t stop giggling, how Oliver can’t stop smiling and how loud Killian is getting and she realizes that they probably _should_ call it a night. 

Especially since she’s one shot of Jameson away from being unable to walk by herself.

“We ordered you a car,” Oliver explains as they walk out of the side of the club. “And my driver will drop your car off at the hotel, he’ll leave your keys at the front desk.”

Shaking her head, Emma hiccups and asks, “Your driver? Jesus, where’s the Ollie I knew that ate day old pizza and wore t-shirts with holes in them?”

He smiles at her and shrugs as Felicity and Killian talk amongst themselves, making Emma wonder how Killian doesn’t realize he’s nearly yelling.

“He’s still here, he just has something worth living for now.” She smiles to herself, her eyes unconsciously moving toward Killian before Oliver whispers, “And something tells me you do, too.”

Snuggling further into Killian’s leather jacket, instead of answering, Emma simply grins and gives a little shrug. Oliver wiggles his eyebrows at her, and just as she’s about to elbow him in the stomach, Felicity’s loud giggle stops her. Looking over Emma sees the blonde playfully punch her boyfriend in the arm.

“I may be married, Jones, but I’m still a _woman_ ,” Felicity laughs before motioning to Emma. “But I can definitely see how you won our Emma over, and it’s not just with that pretty face.”

“It’s okay, sweetie,” Oliver interrupts, wrapping his arm around his wife’s shoulders. “I’m only your husband. Keep talking about how attractive Killian is.”

“Don’t trouble yourself about it, mate. I have that effect on most people,” Killian jokes with a wink and they all laugh. 

* * *

“Wow,” Emma gasps as she and Killian walk back into their hotel room. “I can’t remember the last time I had _that_ much fun without some magical creature trying to ruin it.”

Killian chuckles while he empties his pocket.

“Aye, those are some good friends you’ve got there, Swan.”

Feeling the alcohol buzz through her system, Emma kicks off her heels and smiles. “You and Ollie seemed to have hit it off.” 

He smirks at her. “Jealous?”

“Hardly,” she snorts as she walks up to him and wraps her arms around his waist. “But I’m surprised you weren’t.”

“Why would I be jealous? Because you ran and jumped into his arms the second he walked through the door? Or because you commented on his bulging physique?” She pinches him playfully and he gives a low laugh before kissing the tip of her nose. “I’m jesting. Perhaps you’re right, before we came I was a bit… _concerned_. But that was until I saw how he looked at his wife.”

She tilts her head. “How does he look at her?”

Killian’s eyes—a little glassy from the rum he’s drank—move back and forth between hers and he reaches up to brush the back of his fingers against her cheek.

“The same way I look at you.”

His words are whispered, but she can feel the intensity behind them and it brings tears to her eyes. Again, she wants to tell him that she loves him, that he makes her happier than she can ever remember being, but when she opens her mouth, nothing comes out. Instead, she reaches up to cup his face and pulls his lips to hers. 

For a while, they just stand there, fighting for dominance as her hands find their way to the back of his head and his hand and prosthetic cup her ass. Her skin is on fire, and the way his tongue massages her own makes her moan into his mouth and step closer. She feels his fingers tighten their grip on her and it makes her want to jump up and wrap her legs around him. But before she can, Killian pulls back and places his forehead against hers.

“Bloody hell,” he pants out, his fingers still lightly pulsating on her ass while he uses his prosthetic to press in the small of her back. “I know I’m going to regret this, but we should stop.”

“Excuse me?”

He closes his eyes for a moment and her brow furrows. She doesn’t understand why he’s stopping. They are _finally_ alone, there isn’t anyone listening or any chance someone will knock on their door to interrupt them and he’s… stopping? She knows he’s turned on—she can feel his bulge against her stomach—so why would he…

“You’re different, Emma.”

She can feel his breath on her face and when she looks up at him, she sees pleading in his eyes. Suddenly, it’s like she can read his mind. They’ve waited so long because they didn’t want to rush through it; they want it to be _special_ in a way, because they are _different,_ and a drunken escapade their first night alone together isn’t really… _them_.

“So are you.”

His eyes move back and forth between hers before they move to where his hand is now lying on her waist. His thumb brushes over her hip bone and she bites her lip. 

“I want…”

He trails off, and she moves her hands down to his chest to where his tattoo is. 

_Thump, thump. Thump, thump._

“Me, too.”

The right side of Killian’s lips pull up into a half smile before he leans down and presses a soft kiss to Emma’s lips. After a moment, he pulls back, and leans his head against hers again with a small huff. They stand there in silence for a short time, just enjoying being in each other’s arms before Emma whispers, “Let’s go to bed.”

They lean on each other as they walk to the hotel bedroom, their fingers intertwining before they are forced to part to get ready for bed. She gets dressed in the bathroom, so she doesn’t—as Killian puts it—drive him completely mad, but it seems pointless because he nearly sobs at the sight of her in shorts and a tank top.

With a shrug, she climbs into the king sized bed and says, “It’s not my fault Storybrooke is always so cold.”

Killian mumbles something under his breath too low for her to hear and she snuggles under the down comfortable with a giggle. Emma watches as he gets ready, her lips pulling into a smile when she sees he’s brought the skull pajamas with him, but her brow furrows when she sees that he keeps his brace on the entire time. 

It’s in that moment she realizes she’s never actually _seen_ him without his brace. He’s always worn it, even when they spent the night together, and it makes her wonder why.

“Do you always sleep with your brace on?”

He stops pulling the covers back and frowns.

“Oh, uh, well… no, not normally.” He scratches behind his ear and her eyebrows raise.

“Then you should take it off.”

“You’re sure you don’t mind… my…” He shifts in discomfort. “My… s-stump?”

She blinks.

“Should I?”

His brow furrows, his voice dripping with uncertainty, “I don’t believe we’ve ever really discussed it.” Her head tilts and he sighs. “I just… I don’t want it to be… I don’t want you to find it unattractive.”

She almost snorts at how ridiculous that statement is because she’s sure there isn’t any part of him that she would find unattractive, but she keeps quiet. He’s insecure about his injury and it’s a side of him she’s never seen before, so she does the only thing she can think of to assure him that he has nothing to worry about.

Pushing herself up from the bed, she walks over to him and takes hold of his left elbow. His eyes are wide as she keeps her gaze locked with his while her fingers move to undo the buckles on his brace. 

He sucks in a breath when she pulls it off and her thumb grazes over the indents the leather has left in his skin.

“Doesn’t this bother you?”

“I’ve become accustomed to it.” His voice is low, and falters slightly.

Her eyes flicker to the scar tissue, a shot of anger toward Gold rushing through her before she leans down to press a soft kiss to his scarred flesh. 

“We’ll have to do something about that when we get home.”

He looks at her in wonder, and she gives him a small smile before pulling him toward the bed. Later, after he’s snuggled up behind her, Emma chuckles softly when she hears him grumble,

“Bloody knew I was going to regret it.”

* * *

Emma’s having quite an unusual dream where she and Killian are swimming in waters so clear, when she looks down, she can see instead of legs, she has a scaly green tail. Her pirate just wraps his arms around her and pulls her in for an underwater kiss when she feels something tickle her cheek.

“Time to wake up, beautiful.” 

The tickling moves to her forehead and suddenly, she’s not in the ocean anymore. She’s somewhere dark and her limbs feel heavy. It’s only after she feels the tickle on her forehead again that she realizes she’s been sleeping and that feeling on her forehead is Killian’s soft kisses. 

A soft groan falls past her lips as she blinks open heavy eyes to see Killian smiling down at her. 

“Ah, there she is,” he whispers, his fingers twirling around the ends of her hair. “Good morning, my princess.”

Smiling, Emma lifts her arms up and stretches as a small squeak of a yawn passes her lips. 

“I dreamt that I was swimming in the ocean—” He raises his eyebrows and she smirks. “—and I was a mermaid.”

“Were you now?” She nods and he slips his left arm under her and places his chin on her chest. “I dare say if I had run into you as a mermaid on my voyages, I’d have jumped right into the ocean after you.”

“Funny you should say that, because you were swimming right along side me.”

“Told you.” 

She giggles and Killian gives her a soft kiss on the chin. It’s then she realizes he smells of soap and his hair is slightly wet.

“What time is it?”

“Half past eleven.”

Her eyes go wide and she shoots up, ripping the blankets off her. “Holy shit! I didn’t mean to sleep so late. I should call Oliver.”

“No need, love,” Killian says as he pushes himself up from the floor where he’d been kneeling. “I spoke to him a moment ago, he’s just awoken himself.”

With a sigh, she stops rushing and allows herself to relax. “Good, now I don’t feel bad.” She pulls her clothes out of the drawer and turns to see Killian smiling down at his phone. “What has you grinning like that?”

He looks up at her with a hint of mischief in his eyes.

“I was speaking to Felicity last night and she told me an interesting story.” Emma raises her brow in question and his eyes move back down to his phone. “About your choice in Halloween costumes.”

Her eyes go wide and he looks up at her with a smirk before he waves the phone at her. Stomping forward, she yanks the phone from his hand to see a picture of herself from when she was twenty-two years old. She’s wearing a red mini dress, with a red jacket that went down to mid-thigh and tied in the middle. The cuffs and hem were black and gold and the hat on her head matched. In her right hand, she held a fake cutlass against her hip, while in her left, she had a fake hook held up to her face as if she was pondering something.

“I don’t know how I feel about a ‘ _Sexy Captain Hook_ ’ costume existing.” He’s right behind her and his voice makes her jump slightly. “But I have to say, if there is one person I’d want to wear it, it’d be you.” 

Slowly, she turns toward him to see his eyes are almost black and his breathing has picked up. In that instant, the hair on the back of her neck stands up and she feels pin pricks all over her body. Her eyes stay on his as she hands him back his phone, and when their skin brushes against each other, she sucks in a breath.

“It was Halloween,” she whispers and he nods as he starts to take her clothes out of her hand. “F-Felicity wanted us to be fairytale characters… it was my way of being a rebel.”

“You make a hell of a captain, Swan.”

Emma swallows to wet her suddenly dry throat and her eyes flicker over to the bed before she looks back to the advancing pirate in front of her.

“How long do we have?”

He shakes his head, his eyes on her lips. “Not long enough to do what I truly wish.” She deflates and he places his hand on her hip before pulling her close. “But long enough to show you how _much_ the true Captain Hook appreciated that costume.”

* * *

Emma and Killian spend the better part of the day with Oliver, mostly setting up to begin their search to find Cooper while they eat greasy food to battle their hangovers. Well, her and Oliver battle their hangovers, while Killian just enjoys the food. When it reaches dinner time, they’re planning on meeting Felicity for a bite to eat when Oliver gets a phone call that makes him act strange.

“I have to go.”

Her brow furrows and she glances at Killian, who shrugs, before looking back to Oliver, who is rushing around the office.

“Everything okay?”

“Uh, yeah,” he breathes out with a smile and her brows raise. “Something just came up… an old case of mine. I have to go chase it before it gets away.”

“Do you need any help, mate?”

Oliver throws his coat over his shoulders and shakes his head. “Nah man, I got it, thanks though.” He picks up his keys and smiles at them both. “You guys can just leave everything here, we’ll pick up where we left off in the morning.”

Before Emma or Killian can say goodbye, Oliver’s gone and they are left alone in this office without any further explanation.

“Okay,” Emma breathes out. “Is it just me or was that weird?”

“Aye,” Killian agrees before dropping a folder onto the desk with a shrug. “Perhaps he has a good reason to be untruthful with us.”

“So you think he was lying, too?”

He snorts while stretching. “Most definitely.” 

“Maybe I’ll confront him about it.”

“You could,” he agrees with a nod before continuing, “Or you could let it go and allow your friend his secrets. Gods know he’s allowed us ours.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Last night? When they asked us how we met? We didn’t exactly tell the truth, love.”

She frowns slightly before shrugging. “Yeah, but I think the story we told was pretty believable.”

“Just as believable as our dalliance being a one time thing.” She gives him a blank stare and he chuckles. “Try not to take it too hard, Swan. I’m sure it’s not personal.”

Emma presses her lips together and thinks for a moment. There’s been something off about Oliver since they first saw each other the night before—he seemed to always be distracted, constantly checking his phone and eyeing the large window that looked out onto the club—but she’s brushed it off. He’s both a father and a business owner, and she can only imagine the type of distractions that come with those titles. 

The loud sound of sirens break her out of her thoughts, and Emma rushes to the window to see three patrol cars speed past. Feeling a little curious, she picks up the police scanner from Oliver’s desk and clicks it on.

_“We have a 211 in progress at the three hundred block of Maple. All officers in the area are to report.”_

“Being a bit nosy, love?” Her sheepish grin makes him smile and he motions to the scanner. “Do you know where they are talking about?”

“Yeah, actually, it’s only a couple blocks away. I’m sure the police can handle—”

_“The Green Arrow has been spotted and is in route, I repeat, the Green Arrow has been spotted and is in route to the location.”_

With wide eyes, Emma looks up at Killian for a quick second before she drops the police scanner and grabs his hand. 

“Come on!”

They race out the door and down the street and she can hear him groan from behind her, “Where the bloody hell are we going?”

By the time they make it to Maple, the police already have the building blocked off and there’s a small crowd of people standing by the barricade. 

“Never took you for a gawker, Swan.”

Rolling her eyes, she asks, “Aren’t you a little bit curious to see this guy that’s running around in a costume after criminals?”

“People did that all the time back in the Enchanted Forest, this isn’t exactly new to me. Only there you’d have to worry about magic, too. Do you have any idea what a witch will do to you if you steal a pie from her window? Because Smee does, and it’s not pleasant.” From the corner of her eye, she sees a couple look at Killian like he has two heads, and her boyfriend shrugs at them. “What?”

The couple looks away and Emma chuckles to herself before she leans up to whisper in his ear, “Less magic talk in the modern world, sweetie.”

Killian rolls his eyes and looks back toward the building. After a moment, he taps her on the shoulder and motions to the top of the building.

“Is that what you’re looking for?”

On the roof, standing there with a bow in his hand, was a dark figure looking down over the crowd. People call out to him, cheer his name, and he does nothing but stand there, before he reaches behind him. In a flash, an arrow is shot across to the building on the left, and the Green Arrow rides a zip line out of sight. 

“Bloke sure knows how to put on a show,” Killian mumbles and Emma nods in agreement.

Just after the Green Arrow disappears, the police walk out of the building with three men, who all have their arms tied behind their backs and gags in their mouths. A gust of wind blows through the street and Emma shivers, having forgotten her jacket back at Oliver’s office. She moves to wrap her arms around herself when she feels Killian working his leather jacket over her shoulders.

“Let’s get back.”

They push their way through the crowd and start the walk back to Oliver’s building. As they walk, Emma can’t help but look up at the buildings as they pass, almost like she expects to see the Green Arrow jumping from rooftop to rooftop.

“That’s going to be it, isn’t it?” She looks at Killian in confusion and he nods behind them. “It’s not going to be some prince that steals your affections away, it’s going to be a man in a leather costume.”

Snorting, she latches onto his arm and says, “Oh, Killian, don’t be jealous.”

“Why would I be jealous? Though I do know you’re partial to men in leather.” She pinches his side and he shakes his head. “According to your boy, that’s how it happens. Traditionally, the woman falls for the masked hero.”

“I guess it’s a good thing I’m not traditional.”

They stop outside of Oliver’s office and Killian turns to her with his brow raised.

“Are you saying you don’t wish to be swept away by a superhero?”

Moving forward, she wraps her arms around his waist and kisses his jaw after saying,

“I think I’ll stick with my pirate hero.”

* * *

Later that night, Emma’s fixing her hair after showering when her eyes zero in on the scar on her hairline. It’s been ages since she’s even remembered it was there, and ever since Oliver called, she’s done nothing but look at it. But she refuses to let it bother her anymore, so she combs her hair over it and walks out to the bedroom only to stop dead in her tracks. In front of the big bay window that looks out onto Star City is a fort made out of blankets and sheets that are carefully held up by two chairs, and a floor lamp.

“Killian?”

His head pops out between the sheets and she has to bite her lip at how adorable he looks. 

With a wide grin, and his eyes shining bright like a child’s, he says, “Ah, Princess! You have arrived.”

“What’s this?”

Instead of answering, he reaches out to offer his hand to her. “Will you join me, my love?”

She eyes him skeptically for a moment before she moves forward to take his offered hand. She has to get down on her knees and crawl into the makeshift fort, and when she does, a small gasp passes her lips. The floor is covered in another sheet, along with pillows, there’s a plate of fruit and vegetables—room service she assumes—and the only light is the moonlight coming in from the window. Killian leans back against what she assumes is the bed before he pulls her between his legs. A small squeak escapes her before she giggles as he wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her back flush with his bare chest. 

“Do you have any idea how lovely that sound is?” he asks in a whisper, his nose brushing against the back of her ear.

“What sound?”

His right hand finds hers, and their fingers intertwine before he places them on her stomach and says, “Your laugh. You don’t do it often, but when you do… it’s as if the angels themselves are singing.”

Blushing, she rests her head back against his shoulder and asks, “Okay, smooth guy. What’s going on?”

“We hardly have nights to ourselves, darling. Is it so bad that I wish to do something nice?” 

With a sheepish grin, she softly shakes her head and relaxes back into him. He begins to explain to her the different constellations in the sky and whenever he points to a different one, he brings their intertwined hands up to trace it. She knows that it’s a bit ridiculous, but when he does, the stars seem to glow brighter, and it’s absolutely breathtaking.

“Do you see that one?”

She nods. “The north star?”

Emma feels him shake his head from behind her and he lifts their hands again. “No, love. The second star on the right…”

Gasping, she sits up, and finishes, “And straight on till morning.”

“Aye. That’s the star that leads to Neverland.”

“Even in this world?”

“In every world, Swan.” She looks back at him over her shoulder. “Neverland is always a possibility to those who believe.”

Her eyes move back to the star and a shiver runs through her as she remembers what happened in Neverland and the magical boy who caused them such trouble. Killian pulls her back to him, brushing his lips against her cheek, and she snuggles against him. After a moment, he moves his lips to her ear and starts to softly sing as he rocks them back and forth.

_“I’ll tell you a tale of the bottomless blue, an’ it’s hey to the starboard, heave ho! Brave sailor, beware, ‘cause a big ‘uns a-brewin’, mysterious fathoms below! Heave ho!”_

He continues to rock them and she can’t help but giggle slightly as she feels his smile against her skin.

_“I’ll sing you a song of the King of the sea, an’ it’s hey to the starboard, heave ho! The ruler of all of the ocean is he, mysterious fathoms below.”_

When he’s finished, she claps and cheers, “Well done, Captain!”

Killian kisses the back of her head and pulls her tighter against him. He tells her stories of how he used the stars to navigate on the oceans and how for a long time, the stars were the only things that knew all his secrets. He tells her how his crew would go onto land whenever they docked in the year they were apart, but he always stayed on the Jolly. He would stay and stare up at the stars because it was one of the few times he could let himself feel the emptiness that was in his heart since she was no longer around. He says he would stay out on the deck until morning some nights, but others, he swore the stars were taunting him because they would spell her name. It wasn’t until he got the note about the new curse that they became a beacon of hope for him. The stars lead him closer to her and he couldn’t love them more. 

And then, finally, Killian tells Emma about the two nights he stayed in New York when he came back to get her. He tells her how he laid on a bench in the park outside of her apartment building and stared up at the stars, only that time, it wasn’t so he could feel the emptiness. It was because for the first time in a year, he felt whole again, and it was all because she was back in his life. 

She listens to the conviction in his voice, the way that it wavers at times but somehow stays strong, and she knows without a doubt that she is completely, one hundred percent in love with him. She wants to tell him, she even opens her mouth a couple times to do it as they sit there in silence and stare at the stars, but her throat constricts and nothing comes out. 

A lone tear runs down her face and she snuggles into him. Killian kisses her head and reaches up to wipe it away.

“It’s not a sad story, love. It’s a happy one. The stars helped me find you.”

Emma looks down at their hands and makes a decision. Maybe if she can’t say the exact words, she can say it in _other_ words. 

“You don’t need the stars…” She feels Killian’s head tilt and she turns to look at him fully with her heart pounding in her chest and whispers her father’s words to him. “Because you’ll find me, wherever I am, you’ll always find me.”

His lips part as his eyes move back and forth between hers. She knows that _he_ knows what those words mean; they had heard them more times than they could count, but she hopes he—

Killian lets out a stuttering breath before he leans his forehead against hers and whispers, “Aye, always.”

Emma lifts her head and softly presses her lips to his. He responds without pause, kissing her top lip then her bottom before she opens her mouth and touches her tongue to his lips. His thumb caresses her jaw as he opens his mouth and grants her the entrance she craves. Their kiss starts out slowly, but then becomes passionate as she feels Killian cup her jaw before moving back to lightly grasp her neck. 

Her skin starts to heat up and her stomach does a little flip. Reaching up with both hands, she grasps his face and turns completely around to straddle his waist. His stump rubs up her side, then around to her back before he pulls her onto him so their chests are flush and their centers rub against each other.

They both moan loudly and it’s like a dam breaks. 

Emma wraps her arms around his shoulders as she continues to grind herself against him while his hand moves down to massage her bare thigh before he gropes her bottom. She pulls back and she can see the confusion on Killian’s face that quickly disappears when she reaches for her tank top and rips it over her head. 

“You’re bloody gorgeous,” he groans before he moves in to nip and suck at her neck. “The most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”

Her fingers tangle in his hair and she throws her head back in pleasure as his lips move down to her collarbone. His stump stays in the middle of her back, guiding her hips across him while he uses his right hand to help angle her back so that he may kiss the tops of her breasts.

The moment his tongue pokes out to lick the edge of her bra, she unwraps her right arm from around his shoulders to grip his bicep, but her hand gets caught in something and before she realizes what it is, she yanks to free herself, and everything comes tumbling down. There’s a loud thud as the chair falls to the floor, followed by the sound of breaking glass as the lamp falls on top of the chair. 

Emma lets out a yelp a second before she finds herself with her head down by Killian’s side, safely tucked under his chest as he used his body to shield her own. 

When the last sound of something falling is heard, Killian moves against her as he attempts to dig them out of the blankets. After what seems like forever, she feels the cool air on her back and is finally able to sit up, only it makes the sheet wrap tighter and she has to wrestle to get it off, which causes her to tumble off Killian’s lap and onto her side.

Blowing a piece of wayward hair out of her face, she looks around with wide eyes. Both chairs have fallen, one over Killian’s shins and the other off to side with the broken lamp over it. After surveying the damage, Emma looks back to Killian and they do the only thing they can…

And dissolve into hysterical laughter.


	6. Chapter 6

The next two days pass basically like the first. Emma and Killian go to Oliver’s office to help with research, find no new leads, and leave with their tails between their legs. Cooper seems to be good at leaving no trace, and while it’s frustrating, Emma is determined to get him and make him pay.

Oliver only rushes out once more after the first time, but Emma doesn’t question him or make any comment. Truth be told, it’s a little easier for Emma and Killian to work when Oliver _isn’t_ there, because that means they don’t have to lie, and she _really_ hates having to lie.

But it’s not like they can ever tell Oliver the truth. He would never understand. 

On their third day of helping Oliver, he gets a call from his daughter’s daycare saying she isn’t feeling well, so they call it an early day and Emma decides to take Killian out to show him around Star City. They visit her old halfway house, old haunts where she used to hang out, and the spot by the water she would go to during the rare times she allowed herself to think of Henry. 

They enjoy the scenery and take a few pictures—she laughs for five minutes straight at his look of disgust when she uses the word ‘selfie,’ only to blush after he takes the picture and makes it the background on his phone—before heading back to the hotel. Instead of opting for room service (again), she offers to head down the street to get them some sandwiches and gives Killian the keys so he can go up to their room. 

Emma is walking back to the hotel when she hears a yell from around the corner. Without thinking, she runs toward the sound just in time to see a man trying to pull a purse off an older woman’s arm. 

“Hey, let go of her!” 

The man looks toward her, allowing the woman to yank her purse back and run off, and Emma curses silently. She hadn’t thought this through and she’s without a gun and the man is slowly advancing on her, she thinks that if she—

Something zips past them and slams into the wall next to the man's head. It’s an arrow and before either of them can react, the arrow head opens and gas leaks out. Within seconds, the man’s eyes roll back and he falls to the ground.

“What the fu—”

She’s cut off and stops moving towards him when she hears a deep voice call out, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

Emma looks up to see the Green Arrow hanging off the side of a building before he jumps down in front of her. 

“What the hell did you do to him?” She asks in a growl, her entire body on high alert.

“Tranquilizer smoke. He’ll be out for thirty-six minutes.” He explains in a masked voice. “I’ll take care of him.”

He flips the man over onto his stomach and pulls what appears to be a gun out of the back pocket before emptying out the bullets and stuffing the gun in his boot.

“How do I know you won’t kill him?”

The Green Arrow stands but never turns to her fully and he keeps his head tilted away, his face hidden in the shadows of the hood.

“You’re new here, I’ll try not to be insulted.”

She presses her lips together and watches as he grabs his bow and points it up toward the top of the building.

“You’re crazy, you know that?” 

He tilts his head just enough so that the streetlight illuminates his lips and she can see his smirk before he zips up into the sky. Shaking her head, Emma checks the would-be robber’s pulse and walks out of the alley.

By the time she makes it back up to the hotel room, KIllian is passed out on the couch with his right hand resting on his stomach and his left arm shielding his eyes. After she puts the sandwiches in the refrigerator in the kitchenette, she moves to the living room and begins to untie his boots. He doesn’t budge at all when she takes his boots off, but when she turns to walk away, his right arm shoots out and yanks her down to him. He turns to lay on his side and traps her between the couch and his chest, and when she tries to protest, he tucks his arm around her back and pulls her to his chest with a very effective, “Shhh.”

They don’t wake up until Henry calls, and when they are done on the phone with him, they eat their sandwiches in bed before calling it a night with an old western playing on the TV.

* * *

“Guys!” Emma calls out as she sits up in her chair, causing both Killian and Oliver to look at her. “I think I found something.” They come over to the desk and she holds out a piece of paper. “This address had a shipment of computer chips sent to it three months ago under Cooper’s name. The house is owned by a Richard and Martha Hatcher, and I did some cross referencing, the name Hatcher doesn’t match with any of Cooper’s known aliases, but the Hatchers do have a twenty-two-year-old daughter who works at some big factory that produces laptops and all other kinds of tech equipment.”

Killian hands the paper to Oliver who asks, “Did the delivery come from her factory?”

With a smirk, she nods toward the papers and says, “She was fired right after this shipment went out. The company didn’t tell me why, but how much do you want to bet…”

“That the coward was using the girl to get the supplies he needed,” Killian finishes for her.

“Bingo. Now, all we have to do is call up the house and see if they are willing to tell us anything they know about where Cooper might be.”

“She’s a young woman,” Oliver counters. “She might not give him up if she thinks he’s in love with her.”

Crossing her arms, she shits back in her chair and says, “But mom and dad would if they thought he was the reason she was fired.”

Both men smile and Killian asks, “How are you going to get them to talk to you, love?”

“Oh, they aren’t going to talk to me.” Killian tilts his head and Emma smiles. “They’re going to talk to Patty Mae.”

Killian’s brow furrows while Oliver smirks before he turns to grab the phone off of the desk behind him and puts it next to Emma. As she dials the number, she sees from the corner of her eye Oliver lean back against the desk and motion to Killian.

“Wait until you see this.”

The phone rings a couple times before a woman answers. “ _Hatcher residence.”_

“Hi there!” Emma greets in her sweetest, thickest, southern accent, which causes Oliver to chuckle and Killian’s brows to raise. “This is Patty Mae with Omaha Insurance, who do I have the pleasure of speaking with today?”

“ _Martha Hatcher._ ”

“Well, hello, Mrs. Hatcher. Like I said before, I’m Patty Mae with Omaha Insurance and this call will be recorded for quality purposes. Is Cooper Seldon available to speak with?”

_“I’m sorry, Cooper no longer lives here.”_

“Aw, well, shucks. Do you happen to know where I can reach him at?”

_“Uh, no, sorry.”_

“That’s okay, I’m sorry to disturb you, ma’am. You’re just the fourth place I called and if I don’t get a hold of this man, my boss is going to be on my hide faster than a fruit fly on a watermelon on a hot summer day,” Emma explains with a fake chuckle and when Killian looks at her in question, she shrugs.

“ _Oh._ ” The woman sounds surprised. “ _Is there a problem?”_

“Well, you see, Cooper had insurance with us a couple years ago and his car was stolen. He put in a claim to have the car paid off but he never filed a police report so we couldn’t do anything, for fraud purposes, you understand.”

_“Yes, of course.”_

“And it just so happened we got a call about ten days ago from the police saying that his car was located in a junk yard not five miles from where he said it was stolen. It had been gutted torn to shreds. Now we are trying to get another statement from him so we can get this claim settled. Bosses are really upset they let this one slide through… trying to avoid a lawsuit, you know.”

_“That sounds terrible.”_

Emma nods and twirls the cord around her finger. “That’s why I was hoping I could reach him. It’s best we contact him before we move further with the claim.”

_“Hold on for one moment. Let me get my daughter, she might be able to help you. I think she’s still in contact with him.”_

Holding up two thumbs to Oliver and Killian, Emma says into the phone, “Well aren’t you just a peach, thank you so much, darling.”

Killian leans onto the desk next to Oliver and gives her an amused look and she sticks her tongue out at him.

_“Ms. Patty Mae?”_

“Yes, sugar, I’m here.”

_“My daughter says he’s out of the state at the moment.”_

Cursing under her breath, Emma presses her lips together and thinks for a moment. “Does she have any way to contact him? Truth be told, Cooper doesn’t need to do much, we just need a statement from him on what happened with the stolen vehicle, signed, dated, and with a copy of his driver’s license and we can get this all squared away right quick.”

There’s the sound of something rubbing against the receiver before Emma hears muffled voices. 

_“Well do you? … Elizabeth, I am done playing these games with this boy… you’ve already lost your job and this a matter of fraud! You will not be thrown into his legal matters as well… then go get me his number!”_ Emma quickly shoots forward and motions for something to write with. Both men jump up and when Killian hands her a pen and a piece of paper, she shoulders the phone and waits. “ _I’m sorry about that, Miss.”_

“Oh, don’t you go apologizing to me you sweet thing, you’re the one helping me here.”

_“She says that when he calls her, he always calls from his friend Braydon Righter’s cell phone. That number is…”_

Emma writes the name and number down before handing it off to Oliver. 

“Ma’am, you’re a lifesaver. Honestly, between me and you, I was the one who took Mr. Seldon’s call all those years ago, but what’s a girl to do when he doesn’t follow the correct procedures? But of course, now my boss doesn’t want to hear any of that.”

_“I understand, sweetheart. I’m so glad I could help.”_

“And I’ll be sure to take this number out of his file. I don’t want any other people calling and tormenting you after all you’ve done for me. God knows I don’t like getting phone calls in the middle of the day when I’m at home,” Emma says with a fake giggle.

_“I appreciate that.”_

“Again, thank you so much for your help, you have a beautiful day, bye now.”

The second she hangs up the phone, Oliver jumps up and claps with a cheer.

“Every time! That little southern belle works every single fucking time!” 

He gives her a high five and Killian chuckles.

“The daughter said he was out of the state right now, which we all know is bullshit. But, when she does speak to him, he calls from that number.”

Oliver holds the piece of paper up and says, “I’m going to have Felicity see if she can find anything on this guy. Emma, sweetheart, you’re an angel.” 

She laughs as he presses a kiss to her cheek before he rushes past her to his desk to call his wife. Looking up, she sees Killian staring at her with a half-smile and she stands.

“What’s the matter, didn’t like Patty Mae?” 

He chuckles at her southern accent again and places his hand on her hip to pull her closer. 

“I’ve said it before, love, you’d have made one hell of a pirate.”

With a smile, she leans in for a kiss and hums against his lips. 

“Okay,” Oliver starts as he walks back a little while later. “Felicity was able to get a current address on Braydon Righter. It’s about a half an hour away and I…” He checks his watch and curses. “I have to pick Mia up from my mother-in-law’s.”

“Killian and I can go check it out, see if anything pans out.”

“Are you sure?”

Nodding, Emma takes her jacket that Killian hands to her and says, “We got this, Ollie. Go get your daughter, we’ll stop by on our way back.”

* * *

An hour later, Emma and Killian are sitting in her bug eating fast food as they watch the residence across the street and three houses up.

“These onion rings are bloody garbage compared to Granny’s,” Killian mumbles before he takes a sip of his drink.

“I know, I used to love them when I lived here, but everything seems weak in comparison nowadays.” 

“You miss home?”

Looking over at him, she gives a small smile and nods. “I do. I mean, it’s nice seeing Oliver and Felicity, and it’s kind of fun doing all of this again, especially with you here.” He lifts her hand to his lips and presses a soft kiss to it. “But I do miss home. I miss Henry and my parents… my brother… but it’s been nice having our own space. When we get back, I really need to look into getting my own place.”

She looks out the window towards the house and Killian agrees in a whisper, “Aye.” A moment passes before she hears him start again, “Emma…”

Before he can finish, a black van pulls up outside of the house and she slips down into her seat, motioning for Killian to do the same, when a man with brown shaggy hair comes out of the house. He walks down the steps and meets the driver of the van at the front gate. The driver hands over the keys to the van as they begin to speak.

“Is that Braydon?”

Killian lifts the photo Felicity printed for them and says, “Aye, that’s him.”

Picking up her camera, she starts to snap pictures as the two men converse when a woman jogs past.

“Nice ass, sweetheart!” Braydon yells out, causing the other man to laugh.

Scrunching her nose in disgust, Emma mumbles, “What a fucking slime bucket.”

Killian grunts in agreement and she takes a few more pictures of the men and the van before she puts the camera down and starts the bug. 

“Let’s get these pictures back to Felicity, see if she can get anything out of them.”

* * *

They are riding the elevator up to Oliver and Felicity’s penthouse when Emma looks over to Killian and says, “It was nice having you there with me tonight.”

A small smile appears on his lips. “Aye?”

“It’s like I got to share a part of myself with you that I hadn’t shared before.”

With a shy smile, he looks back to the elevator doors and says, “I think I like the sound of that.”

She feels a blush creep up onto her cheeks and they step out into the hall and make their way toward the Queens’ front door. Not long after they knock, the door swings open to reveal Felicity, looking beautiful as always.

“Hey!”

Emma steps into the open door, giving Felicity a hug before the blonde turns and receives a kiss on the cheek from Killian.

“I’m glad you guys are okay,” she starts while closing the door. “Oliver told me you went for a stakeout. You know I never liked when you did those types of things.”

“We’re fine, lass. It wasn’t our first time looking for a bad guy.”

“Hey, guys!”

They turn to see Oliver walking into the room with a little girl in his arms. She’s wearing a silver tiara, her blonde hair in adorable ringlets, and she’s dressed in what looks like a pink princess costume and holding a star wand in her hand.

When Oliver approaches, he reaches out to give Killian a handshake and kisses Emma on her cheek before he turns to his daughter with a smile.

“Mia, these are Mommy and Daddy’s friends we were telling you about. This is your Aunt Emma and your Uncle Killian.”

Before Emma can respond, Oliver places Mia on the ground and Killian gets down on one knee after bowing from the waist.

“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Princess Mia. I am Killian Jones, Captain of The Jolly Roger.”

Mia giggles, her little curls bouncing as she sways back and forth.

“But that’s Captain Hook’s ship, and he’s a pirate!”

From her vantage point, Emma can see Killian’s face light up before he gets into character and winks at the little girl. 

“Aye, that he is, but I commandeered his ship so that it could be used for good instead of bad!”

Felicity looks to Emma with amusement and she shrugs before turning back to her amazing boyfriend.

“Wow,” Mia gasps. “You must be a very brave Captain to take a pirate ship!”

“I try to be. Now, may my princess and I enter your beautiful castle?”

“You may, Captain!” Mia grants with a curtsey before she turns to her mother and cries out, “I must tell the kingdom!”

The four adults laugh as the little girl runs off and Oliver motions for them to go into the other room. 

“So, we were able to get some pictures of Braydon and this van that was parked outside of his house. I figured you could look up the license plate and if anything comes of it, Killian and I can go back before we head to the hotel.”

“I’m sure I’ll find something,” Felicity says with a smile after taking the camera.

Oliver looks over at his wife proudly before he grabs three bottles of beer and a glass of wine.

“Thanks, mate.”

Emma is explaining what they saw at Braydon’s house when the echoing sound of little feet running down the hall reaches them, and a tiny voice calls out, “Uncle Killian, you have to come quick!”

Her boyfriend’s eyes widen slightly as he swallows down his drink and Oliver sighs.

“Mia, I told you that we had grown up things to do right now.”

“But daddy!” Mia whines. “Pirates are at the gates and I need Uncle Killian because he’s a Captain!”

With her hand flying to her mouth, Emma forces herself to contain her squeak and watches as another kid in her life falls in love with Killian.

“Are you going to help me with this?” Oliver asks his wife.

Felicity keeps her eyes on the computer screen and answers, “She’s your daughter.”

Oliver presses his lips together. “Why is it that when she does something smart, like read from the periodic table, she’s _your_ daughter, but when she wants something, she’s _my_ daughter?”

She continues to type without looking away from her screen and Oliver sighs again. Killian chuckles after taking another pull from his bottle and stands.

“S’fine. I never could deny a princess in need.” He winks at Emma and though she rolls her eyes, there’s a small smile on her face. Killian turns back to Mia and says, “Lead the way, Your Majesty. Captain Jones will help you with the pirates!”

Mia grabs his jacket sleeve and starts to pull him before she stops and turns back to everyone.

“Daddy, you have to come, too! You’re the king and you have to help protect the kingdom!”

Felicity and Emma both snicker as Oliver drops his head in defeat before looking up at Killian.

“Are you ready for this?”

Killian smirks. “Always.”

Oliver picks up his beer bottle and holds it up in the air before calling out, “We must save the kingdom!”

Mia begins to bounce on her feet as her father jogs over to her and picks her up before the three of them leave the room. 

“He seems like he’s really good with kids,” Felicity comments as she takes a sip of her wine.

Emma stares at the empty doorway for a moment. 

“Yeah, he is.” 

“It’s a good quality to have.” Emma turns to Felicity after her comment with her brows raised and she shrugs, “What? I’m just saying.”

“Mhm,” Emma responds, and Felicity smiles.

“Are you telling me you haven’t thought about it? I know your aversion to commitment but with someone _that_ good looking, isn't it hard not to?”

Emma playfully smacks her friend in the arm, and they share a laugh. 

“Right now I think we’re both just concentrating on getting some alone time without everything falling apart around us,” she sighs, picking at the label on her bottle. “This is like a vacation for us.”

Felicity snorts. “Ever since we had Mia, our vacations consist of Rosa watching Mia and us staying at the office late, so, I know how it is.”

Taking another sip, Emma waits a moment before she asks, “Does that also include not having sex?”

That finally makes Felicity look up from her computer, and Emma shrugs.

“As in not having sex in a long time?”

“As in we’ve done everything but have sex and I’m going completely insane.” Felicity tilts her head and a groan passes Emma’s lips. “God, when I say it out loud, I sound like a teenager, though I don’t remember having this much trouble getting laid when I was a teenager.”

“Well, is there a reason?”

With a sigh, Emma runs her hand through her hair and shakes her head. Part of her wishes she hadn’t said anything at all, it’s a private matter… but another part of her kind of loves it. She feels like she finally has a friend she can talk to about normal things, and that hasn’t happened since before she broke the curse and was living with her mother.

“I don’t know if you know this, but before Killian, one-night stands were sort of my thing.” Felicity gasps in mock shock, and Emma chuckles, “I know, I was very good at hiding it.” They share a smile and she sits back in her seat to continue. “Killian was the same way. Sex is easy for us, and we wanted it to be different because _we’re_ different. I know it sounds crazy—”

“It doesn’t sound crazy,” Felicity cuts in. “It sounds like two people who are trying really hard to make sure they let the other person know they care about them, but as an outsider looking in, can I give you a bit of advice?” Emma waits a moment to nod. “It’s pretty damn clear that you both care _very_ deeply for each other and that this is more than a one night stand, so put that hotel bed to use and take the Captain for a spin!”

Emma nearly spits out her drink and Felicity laughs. Before either one of them can say another word, there’s a holler. 

“We must protect the Queen and Princess Emma!”

Emma and Felicity look up in time to see Oliver running in wearing a plastic crown on his head, and Mia on his back. Killian follows them wearing a ridiculous looking pirate hat and holding a fake toy cutlass.

“Mommy!” Mia giggles. “Daddy and Uncle Killian defeated the pirates! We’re here to rescue you and Aunt Emma from their prison!”

Felicity gasps and puts her hand to her chest. “My heroes!” 

Mia jumps off her father's back and runs up to her mother. “Now you have to give him true love’s kiss!”

Felicity smiles at her daughter and walks over to Oliver as Mia turns to Emma.

“You, too, Aunt Emma!”

Placing her bottle on the table, Emma stands with a nod, “You are very right, Princess!” From the corner of her eye, she sees Oliver dip his wife and give her a dramatic kiss as their daughter cheers. She walks up to Killian and says, “I think I’ll take one with less theatrics, Captain.”

He grins and pulls her into his arms, and when his lips are inches from hers, he whispers, “I’ll take my True Love’s kiss any way I can get it.”

Emma gasps before his lips connect with hers and Mia begins to clap.

“Yay!”

_Yay indeed._

* * *

“What are we doing back here, love?” 

Emma parks her bug in a different spot on Braydon’s street and turns off the engine.

“I know Felicity said there was probably nothing in the van, but I wanted to double check.” She checks up and down the street and sees that it’s pretty dark because most of the streetlamps around his house are broken. “If I could just get in there…” Killian unbuckles his seat belt and Emma’s brow furrows. “What are you doing?”

“You want to know what’s in that van, I’m going to check it out.” She starts to argue, but he cuts her off. “Swan, I came to help and that’s what I’m going to do. I’ll be right back.”

He snatches the black beanie off the dashboard and pulls it down on his head before getting out of the car. She double checks to make sure no one is watching while he slowly walks across the street and makes his way toward the van—he really does know how to use the night to his advantage. 

Her heart starts to race as he works the lock on the back of the van before disappearing inside and she bites her lip. She trusts that Killian can take care of himself—he’s lived for centuries without her—but if something _did_ happen to him… she’d never forgive herself.

The sound of a door closing makes Emma look up, and her eyes widen when she sees Braydon walk out of his house. Cursing, she quickly gets out of her car and jogs across the street while Braydon locks up his front door. When he turns to walk down the steps, Emma unzips her jacket and pulls her shirt down so that her cleavage is more evident and the top of her bra peaks out.

She starts to walk down the street and slows down as she pulls out her phone at the same time that Braydon reaches the bottom of the steps. Purposely ignoring him, she sways her hips a little as she walks past and waits.

“Well hello there, gorgeous.”

_Gotcha._

She turns back to him with a confused look.

“Are you talking to me?”

“I am.” He smirks, his eyes moving up and down her form. “What’s your name, honey?”

Twirling a piece of hair around her finger, Emma sways back and forth to bring attention to her cleavage and gives a flirty smile. 

“Jennie.”

His gaze moves down to her chest just like she intended, and she has to hold back her eye roll. _Douchebag._

“Well, Jennie, I’m Braydon, and I’d love to take you out for a drink.”

Emma’s eyes flicker behind him to see the back of the van open before Killian’s foot touches the ground.

“You don’t even know me.”

The van door closes, and Braydon takes a step closer.

“That’s what the drink is for… to get to know you better, hotness.” Killian’s head pokes out from around the van and there’s a glare on his face. When she doesn’t answer, Braydon brushes his fingers over her arm, and she has to fight back the urge to punch him in the face. “What’s the matter? You have a boyfriend?”

_Yeah, a three-hundred-year-old one that’s currently staring daggers at the back of your head._

Braydon once again takes a moment to look her up and down and she uses it to motion to Killian for him to move. His nostrils flare and she can almost see his jaw tick before he does as she requests.

“Let me at least get your number.” He pulls out his phone and pouts. “Please?”

An idea begins to form in her head and Emma presses her lips together. Taking Braydon’s phone, she adds in the number of the burner phone that Oliver had given them under “Jennie” before handing it back to him.

“Thanks, doll.” He taps her on the chin, and she forces a giggle. “I’ll be in touch.”

Braydon heads toward the van and she pretends to continue to walk down the sidewalk. He beeps as he passes, and she throws him a flirtatious wave before rolling her eyes when he drives off. The second the van is out of sight; her shoulders sag and she lets out a deep sigh.

“Was that necessary?” 

She can actually _feel_ Killian’s growl and she pulls up her shirt with a huff.

“If I hadn’t done it, you’d still be in the back of that van.”

He yanks the hat off and mumbles, “Next time, let me go.” Her brows raise and he looks down at his feet. “It’s not fun seeing you flirt with another man, Swan, even if it’s fake.”

Kissing him on the cheek, she asks, “Did you find anything?” 

He reaches inside his jacket and pulls out a tablet, making Emma’s brows raise. 

“Thought perhaps Felicity could get something out of it.”

“Killian, this is perfect!” She looks at the tablet and smiles up at him. “Look at you, picking out electronic devices.” This time, it’s Killian that rolls his eyes and when he opens his mouth to speak, Emma notices something over his shoulder. “What is that?”

His brow furrows and he turns. “What’s what?”

There’s a dark figure on the roof of the house across the street and when she points to it, the figure jumps to the ground. 

“Son of a bitch!” 

Emma runs across the street after the dark figure, but before she can turn the corner, a hand reaches out and pulls her back.

“What the bloody hell do you think you’re doing?” Killian growls, his breath coming out labored from his run to catch up to her.

“That crazy-ass Green Arrow was here! What if he knows something we don’t?”

With a huff, Killian drops her arm and says, “Swan, whatever he’s here for, it’s not safe to go pursuing him in the dark. Let’s go back to the car and take the device to your mates, aye?”

Shaking her head, she protests, “What if he is working with them? He could be—”

“I’m not.”

They both turn to see the Green Arrow emerge from the shadows, causing Killian to step forward and place himself between her and the masked vigilante. 

“There’s no need for that. I’m not here to hurt you.”

“I think it’s best you take your leave, mate.”

The Green Arrow smirks and Emma’s brow furrows. There’s something familiar about his smile now that she can see it a little more in the light of the streetlamp and it’s… bugging her.

“Is that a threat?”

Killian takes a step forward. “When it’s a threat, you’ll know it.”

The masked man takes a step forward, the light illuminating his face even more, and her jaw drops when she notices the small mole on the right side of his chin.

“You’re a brave man,” The Green Arrow says to Killian, but before her boyfriend can respond, she steps forward.

“Ollie?”

The vigilante’s body goes tense as Killian’s gaze snaps to her then back to the Green Arrow. The three of them stand there in silence for a long moment before he reaches up for his hood. Both Emma and Killian watch as he pushes it down and takes off his mask to reveal their friend.

Oliver presses his lips together with a nod and mumbles, “Emma.”

She stands there for a second, frozen, before she stomps forward. Oliver opens his mouth as if to say something but is cut off when Emma punches him square in the jaw. 

“Are you fucking insane?” Emma nearly yells, her fist pulling back to punch him again when she feels a hand grasp her wrist. 

“Christ, Em!” Oliver cries out, his hand cradling his jaw. “Who taught you to punch like that?”

“You did, jackass!”

He chuckles while continuing to rub his jaw. “Damn, you hit harder than I remember.” She moves to hit him again, but Killian wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her back against him and Oliver nods to him. “Thanks, man.”

“Mate…” Killian starts with a shake of the head.

“I know what this looks like…”

“You have no idea what this looks like!” Emma growls. “This whole time its been you? Are you out of your fucking mind? Do you have any idea how dangerous this is?” Oliver looks around when the sound of a car echoes from behind them and quickly puts his mask back on and pulls his hood up. “You really think you’re just going to shoot yourself off and not explain any of this? I’m going to kick your ass! Does Felicity know?”

He sighs and motions to his ear. “I have you yelling in one ear and her in the other, so if one of you could give me a break, I’d really appreciate it.” Emma looks at Killian over her shoulder, the anger still flowing through her, and he gives a quick squeeze to let her know he’s still there with her. “We can talk… just not here,” Oliver explains. “Meet me back at my office, I’ll explain everything there.”

Before they can answer, he grabs his bow, shoots an arrow up onto a roof, and zips away.


	7. Chapter 7

Emma slams the door to her bug and practically runs toward Oliver’s building. Just as she’s about to rush up the steps, she’s stopped by a hand on her arm and she turns to Killian with her eyes wide.

“Swan, you might want to calm down.”

“Oh, I’m calm. I’m _very_ calm.” She gives a fake smile and turns back to the building. “Calm enough to know I’m going to kill him.”

Killian pulls her back again and she growls.

“Oliver is a grown man, love. He might be doing something crazy, but how is it any crazier than the things we deal with back at home?”

“That’s Storybrooke, Killian! There’s magic, and portals, and potions… here he’s going to get himself killed!”

He shakes his head and says, “But that’s not what’s truly bothering you, is it?”

“He lied to me, just like everybody else…”

“He didn’t lie, Emma, he just didn’t tell you. There’s a difference,” he mumbles while stepping forward. “We lied.” She balks and he continues, “We’re the ones that lied about almost every aspect of our life. How can we expect him to tell us everything when we haven’t been truthful with him?” Looking down at her feet, she bites her bottom lip and Killian tucks a piece of hair behind her ear. “I’m not saying he was right to keep this from you. I merely think we should hear him out.”

She doesn’t answer right away, and when he ducks his head down to look her in the eye, she huffs with a nod. 

“Fine, I’ll wait to kill him until _after_ I hear him out.”

With a half smirk, he presses a soft kiss on her cheek and says, “Thank you, princess.”

Emma narrows her eyes at him as he opens the door and motions for her to go inside. When they walk into the office, all the lights are off, but she can see Oliver leaning back on one of the desks, illuminated by the moonlight, with his hood down and his eye mask gone.

Something tells her he’s done that on purpose.

“Did he have to convince you to hear me out before you killed me?”

Her jaw clenches and Killian chuckles.

“You’re lucky I’m here, mate.”

Oliver cracks a smile. “Yeah, something tells me you’re right.”

He pushes himself off the desk and toward the wall to the right. She watches as he takes his glove off and presses his thumb to what she previously thought was a thermometer, and the bookshelf moves to reveal elevator doors.

“Really? A secret passageway?”

Despite the smile on his face, Oliver rolls his eyes and doesn’t press a button until both her and Killian step onto the elevator. 

“Are you going to start talking or am I going to punch you again?”

She feels Killian’s hand go to the small of her back and Oliver reaches up to rub his jaw.

“Is there a bruise? I feel like there’s a bruise.”

Before she can say anything, the elevator doors open again Emma’s eyes widen when she sees Felicity standing there with a sheepish smile on her face.

“Hi, guys,” she greets with a small wave and Emma presses her lips together. Oliver walks up to his wife and he winces when she reaches up to catch his chin and forces his head to tilt so she can look at his jaw. “I told you she was going to punch you.”

Emma can see Oliver roll his eyes as he backs away, and she storms off the elevator.

“Both of you? Really? Do you have any idea—”

Felicity puts her hands up and cuts her off.

“Yes, Emma, we do. But what he’s doing is _good_. This city needs someone they can rely on, someone who will take risks that the law can’t…”

“They want to arrest him, Felicity, what happens then?”

“They _wanted_ to arrest him, but not anymore. Sure, the official word is still to arrest the vigilante known as the Green Arrow on sight, but we help the police now. They know that he’s a force for good and that’s all that matters.”

Felicity sighs before turning with Oliver to walk up onto a platform that looks like a workstation. Emma and Killian follow them, and she can’t help but look around. On one side there’s what she assumes is a workout area complete with a punching bag, a target, a few pieces of exercise equipment, and a salmon ladder that hangs from the ceiling. On the other side there are three glass cases with mannequins inside, two of them wearing variations of green leather suits, and in the middle of the room, on the platform, there’s an entire lab of computers, screens, and more state-of-the-art, high-tech machinery Emma couldn’t even begin to name.

Emma asks in a whisper, “What _is_ this place?”

From the corner of her eye, she sees Killian shake his head slowly as he takes in the room with his jaw slightly open.

“This is where we work,” Felicity shrugs. “Oliver goes out, and I’m here to watch his back. We never go without backup.”

Emma walks over to one of the computers to see a file open with all the information they have on Cooper, while Killian moves to examine a stack of Oliver’s arrows.

His fingers ghost over the weapons before he takes one out to eye it more carefully.

“These are bloody amazing.”

Emma sends her boyfriend a glare, only to have him roll his eyes at her before putting the arrow back in its place.

“I wanted to tell you, Em, but you’re right. What I do _is_ dangerous, and I didn’t want to put you in harm’s way.”

Pressing her lips together, she folds her arms across her chest. “I can take care of myself!”

Oliver sighs and leans back against the counter. “I would think you of all people would understand about having secrets.”

“Did you think I wouldn’t understand why you would want to do this?”

He chuckles and motions to his jaw. “You punched me in the face. I’m pretty sure that’s the definition of not understanding.”

“I punched you in the face because what you’re doing is incredibly stupid!” He crosses his arms over his chest, and she sighs. “But... I guess I can understand.”

Killian appears next to her and she feels a reassuring hand on her lower back.

“Emma, we did want to tell you… but there are things…” Felicity trails off, wringing her hands together.

“Things?”

Oliver stands. “There are things in this world that are so… it’s just too much to ask someone to believe in.”

Her eyes move to Killian’s and they share a small smile, before he turns back to their friends and says, “I’m sure we can keep up.”

Oliver runs his hand over his head and hesitates before starting.

“I’m not just talking about criminals. There’s demons… metahumans… magic…” Emma and Killian’s eyes meet, and she presses her lips together while Oliver continues to go on. “...creatures you wouldn’t even believe.”

“Metahumans?” Killian asks, looking to Emma, who simply shrugs before turning her attention back to Oliver.

“This is a lot I’m going to be asking you to believe in without any proof.”

Killian wipes at the corner of his lips and motions toward them. “Well, maybe you can remember that once we tell you the truth about us.” Emma grabs onto his arm and he looks down at her. “Swan, he’s taking a leap of faith with us. It would be bad form not to do the same.”

It’s Felicity that furrows her brow and asks, “Wait, what do you guys mean?”

Wetting her lips, Emma says, “Look, let’s just… you go first, okay?”

The couple exchanges a look before they nod, and Oliver begins his tale. He tells them about how he started, well, _this_ , after his father died, and how opening the bail bonds business was supposed to be a cover, but his going out at night as the Green Arrow was nothing like it is now. At first, he was out for blood, fueled by vengeance and resolved to let nothing stand in his way. 

Killian nodded sympathetically at that, and Emma knew her boyfriend understood a revenge-driven pursuit better than anyone in the room. 

Oliver explains how it wasn’t until after he allowed his feelings for Felicity that he realized he was on the wrong path, that vengeance _wasn’t_ justice, and that he needed to become something else. Emma asks how Felicity found out, and her heart just about stops when he tells her how he had gotten shot one night and went to Felicity for help. He tells Emma that he would have gone to her, but it was the night she had been arrested after a perp accused her of fracturing his wrist.

Emma frowns, because she remembers the night he’s talking about; it was the first time in their entire partnership that he wasn't there for her, and she left the holding cell the next day feeling utterly betrayed. 

He tells them stories of the people he’s met along the way; of the magic he’s encountered and the different creatures throughout the multiple universes. He and Felicity explain how there is a whole different world out there that no one knows about, much less will believe exists, and Emma and Killian share a look. 

“I wanted to tell you, Em.” Oliver’s voice drips with sadness. “But I didn’t want to burden you with all the dangers that come with it. You have your own life to worry about, and I didn’t want you to have to worry about this too.”

Shaking her head, Emma mumbles, “Yeah, well, maybe you should have thought about that before you started stalking us on stake outs.”

“I told you she was going to figure it out,” Felicity teases while she smacks her husband in the arm.

“That night in the alley by the hotel? That was an accident. I was on my way to see if you guys wanted to get some dinner when I heard the woman scream. I had my gear with me and just reacted. Imagine my surprise when I saw you there trying to take him down.”

Killian clenches his jaw while nodding, “Aye, she’s known for that.”

With a roll of her eyes, Emma asks, “And tonight?”

“I hated the fact that you guys were out there by yourselves. So, we waited until Mia went to bed, asked Rosa to watch her and I went just to make sure everything was okay. I had only just got there when you caught me.”

A silence falls over the four of them, and when Emma looks over at the couple, she sees that they’re nervous. She chuckles dryly and shakes her head.

“Christ, Ollie. We’ve been here for less than a week and caught you, how the hell have you kept this up for _years_?”

He smirks and Felicity giggles.

“You know how he is, Emma. He’s always been great at lying to complete strangers, but when it comes to people he cares about, he’s terrible at it.”

“That makes two of us,” she winces and Killian snorts.

“Yeah, speaking of that,” Oliver starts while motioning to her and Killian. “You guys want to tell us how you really met or are we going with that bullshit story you told us at Verdant about pretending to be lost while traveling?”

Killian looks to Emma and she groans.

“Yeah, alright.” Taking a deep breath, she tucks a piece of hair behind her ear and asks, “Just… try and keep an open mind?”

They nod and she looks to Killian for guidance.

“Might as well start from the beginning, love.”

“Emma,” She looks over to Oliver who gives a small smile. “Do you really think what you’re about to tell us will be any crazier than—”

“Killian is Captain Hook.”

Oliver and Felicity’s eyes both widen and Killian’s head snaps over to her.

“Bloody hell, that’s what you’re starting with?”

Emma raises her hands in surrender and shrugs. “You said start from the beginning!”

“How is _that_ the beginning?!”

Before she can respond, Oliver asks, “I’m sorry, did you just say that Killian is Captain Hook?”

“Yup,” Emma draws out slowly and Felicity’s brow furrows.

“As in the pirate from the Disney movie?”

Killian rolls his eyes. “From what I’ve heard, that tale is very wrong.” He turns to Emma and motions over his shoulder. “Why don’t you start with the curse, love?”

She takes a deep breath and begins. She explains about her parents and their fight with the evil queen that lead to the curse, and how they put her through a magical wardrobe so that she would be able to return and save them. She tells them how the curse kept everyone young, and that the picture she showed them at Verdant was really her parents, and not just friends they met. 

After that, Emma sticks to the key points, because if she had to explain everything that’s happened since she stepped foot in Storybrooke, they’d be here for days. Oliver and Felicity didn’t need to know that Neal was actually the son of the Dark One and Milah, who was Killian’s ex, or that Regina was technically her step grandmother. It was all too complicated. So, she keeps it as simple as possible: all the fairytales they were told when they were growing up are, for the most part, true.

To give them credit, Oliver and Felicity stay quiet throughout the story. They don’t ask questions, and the only reactions they give are quiet gasps and different facial expressions. When she finishes, Oliver is still leaning back against the counter, arms crossed and brows furrowed, while Felicity is sitting in the chair next to him with her brows slightly raised. 

Emma sighs as Killian brushes his thumb on her lower back. 

“I know you two probably think we’re crazy…”

Felicity speaks first.

“I couldn’t find Storybrooke anywhere,” she whispers. “When you told us that’s where you live, we were going to buy you plane tickets so that you wouldn’t have to drive… but it was like it just didn’t exist.”

“That’s because it shouldn’t, lass.” Killian mumbles. “As far as the outside world is concerned, Storybrooke is nonexistent, and if anyone tried to find it, they wouldn’t be able to.”

“I know how insane this all sounds—” Emma starts, but Oliver shakes his head.

“Em, I’ve known you for a long time, and well enough to know that you wouldn’t put this much conviction into something you didn’t believe in yourself.”

“We believe you, Emma.”

She gives Felicity a skeptical look and Oliver nods.

“We just sat here and told you about things no normal person would believe, and you both did without question. What makes you think that we wouldn’t believe you, too?”

Emma bites her lip and looks over at Killian as Felicity stands and walks to them. Her friend has a small smile on her face and grasps her hands.

“Your parents are Snow White and Prince Charming! I always knew there was something special about you!” Emma blushes and Felicity squeezes her hands. “I’m serious! I’ve always looked at you as a savior since what happened with Cooper, and now I know it’s really true!”

Felicity pulls her in for a hug, and Emma’s entire body relaxes. She has to fight back her own tears as she embraces her friend, and from the corner of her eye she sees Killian and Oliver watching them with similar smiles. 

“Oh my god!” Felicity gasps as she pulls back, her voice filled with excitement. “Does that mean Aurora and Phillip are real, too? Sleeping Beauty is my favorite story!”

With a giggle, Emma nods. “Yeah, they actually just had a baby.”

Felicity claps in glee while Killian steps forward and wraps his arm around Emma’s waist.

“Now don’t be modest, Swan. Tell her how you slayed Maleficent.”

Oliver pushes himself off the counter. “You slayed a dragon?!”

“Well, yeah, a little.” Emma shrugs and Oliver does nothing but nod. She frowns and looks to Felicity, who shrugs.

“Honey, what’s the matter?”

He presses his lips together, and after a moment he mumbles, “I took down an army of men drugged with mirakuru.”

Emma’s head tilts while Felicity gasps, “Oh my god, are you jealous?”

He shrugs and waves his hands, “I’m just saying… they weren’t _dragons_ , but they weren’t normal men either.”

Emma smirks. “I took down a giant.”

“Uh, with my help, love,” Killian calls out, but she ignores him.

Oliver’s jaw clenches. “I’ve seen people come back from the dead.”

“So have I,” Emma snorts.

Felicity looks back and forth between them. “Are you guys really going to sit here and argue over who has seen crazier things?”

“I have a magical tattoo that wards off evil spirits,” Oliver growls, ignoring his wife.

With a sigh, Felicity motions for Killian to follow her after she says, “Yep, they are.”

“I have magic,” Emma gloats with a smirk.

Oliver puts his hands on his hips and nods toward Felicity.

“My wife has been possessed by a demon.”

Rolling her eyes, she points to Killian, “My boyfriend is over three hundred years old.”

That makes Oliver stop and his gaze snaps over to the pirate in question, who rolls his eyes. “Not quite three hundred yet, love. Give me a little credit.”

Before Oliver can say anything, Felicity turns to Killian and asks, “Do you really have a hook?”

Emma watches as he unscrews his prosthetic and places it on a table before reaching into his pocket. The metal of his hook glints under the fluorescent lights, and after he clicks it into place, he places it on his thigh and stands tall. Felicity blinks once, twice, then a pink blush forms on her cheeks and she turns away with a mumbled _cool_ , causing her husband to stare at her in disbelief. 

Looking to Killian, Emma catches his smirk and she shakes her head.

Everyone’s a sucker for the hook.

* * *

“It’s called a prosthesis,” Felicity explains a little later as Killian looks into the box she’s handed him. “It’s almost just like your prosthetic, but it has some mobility to it. For, you know, when you can’t wear the hook.”

Killian keeps his eyes on the box, but from where she stands, Emma can see the range of emotions that flash over his face. Her and Oliver look at each other and exchange a small smile when Killian finally lifts his gaze.

“Thank you, lass,” his voice is thick with emotion as he steps forward. “Thank you.”

Felicity’s cheeks flush scarlet when Emma’s boyfriend steps forward and presses a friendly kiss to her cheek, causing Oliver to clear his throat.

“Alright, Jones.” Emma can hear the light heartedness in her friend’s voice, and she chuckles as Oliver holds his hand up. “That’s my wife, remember.”

“Apologies, mate,” Killian smirks. “I’ve forgotten which was your wife, seeing as you were once married to Emma.”

Felicity gasps, her arm wrapping around Killian’s waist as he wraps his around her shoulders, and she giggles.

“Oh my god, that’s right! I forgot about your ten second marriage. Wait!” She looks over to Killian with a frown. “Did they get divorced, is our entire marriage a sham?”

Emma rolls her eyes with her lips spread wide into a smile while Oliver playfully shakes his head. 

“‘Fraid so, but don’t worry, I’m a gentleman. I’ll take care of you,” Killian responds with a wink and Emma pushes herself up. 

“Okay!” She huffs before pulling Killian away from Felicity in a playful manner. “Go to your husband and leave my pirate alone.”

The four of them laugh together and Felicity shows Killian how to put the prosthesis on and use it, before Oliver whisks him away to show him some of the gadgets he has around the bunker. Shaking her head, Emma pulls up a chair to sit next to Felicity and motions to the computer screen that’s filled with some type of numeric code. 

“Frick!”

“What’s that?”

With her fingers moving over the keyboard at record pace, Felicity answers, “Braydon has some sort of block on here. But it’s filled with holes, it won’t take me long to get through.”

Before Emma can answer, a loud clang echoes through the room, and her eyes widen at the sight before her. Killian has taken off his leather jacket, and with his new prosthesis on his left arm, he hops up to grasp the salmon ladder. She watches as he grunts before he jumps with the bar onto the next rung on the ladder. A sliver of his stomach peeks out and his shirt goes tight around his biceps as he uses his upper body to jump.

“Uh… what…”

“Why do you think my computer faces this way?” Felicity asks with a smirk. 

Emma keeps her eyes on Killian as he jumps back down and she mumbles, “Smart woman.” Shaking her head, she turns back to her friend and says, “By the way, thanks _so_ much for sending him that picture of me from Halloween. That wasn’t embarrassing at all!”

Felicity giggles. “Oh my god, I didn’t even think! But, in my defense, how was I to know he was the _real_ Captain Hook? I was just trying to show your boyfriend a sexy photo of you!”

“Which I’ll have to hear about until the end of time, so thank you,” she chuckles while looking back to the computer.

There’s a beep and Felicity reaches for the phone on the counter, then turns to Emma with her eyebrow raised. 

“Why is a random number texting the burner phone asking a girl named Jennie for drinks?” 

Rolling her eyes, Emma explains, “When Killian was in the van, Braydon came out. I had to distract him—he basically begged me for my number.” There’s another beep, only it comes from the computer, not the phone, and she sees Felicity’s jaw drop. “What’s wrong?”

Felicity doesn’t answer; instead, she pushes her chair across the platform to another computer and begins to tap away. Emma looks over at Oliver and Killian, who gaze at her questioningly, and she simply shrugs before turning back to her friend.

Oliver walks back up onto the platform, followed by Killian, and asks, “Babe? Is everything okay?”

Felicity pushes herself back to the original computer and stares at the screen with wide eyes.

“I know what Cooper wants… it’s all on the tablet Killian took.”

“What is it?” Killian asks and Felicity takes a deep breath.

“Thirteen years ago, I wrote a virus to hack government mainframes. He must have figured out how to enhance it when I refused to help and ran with it. He’s been using it since then to bank roll himself, but a couple of years ago, an unnamed—me—sent an email to the government telling them how to stop the virus and who was responsible for it, to cut him off. Anyway, the company I work for is unveiling a chip next month that’s a new wave in technology. It will basically make your computer obsolete, but it’s still in its final stages. If someone like Cooper got his hands on it, he would be unstoppable. Banks… trust funds… nothing would be safe. Basically, anything the internet can touch, he’d be able to get into.”

Emma’s head almost hurts from her explanation and she asks, “What does he want you for, then?”

“I built the firewall that protects the chip. There’s no way he could get past it. He’s good, but I’ve always been better. I am also the only person with the code to get into the case that the chip is in. My guess? He wants me to break the firewall so he can get the chip.”

“And what makes him think you would do that?” Killian asks with a snort.

While rubbing her forehead, Felicity mumbles, “I’m sure he has some kind of trick up his sleeve.” The burner phone chimes, and Emma glances at it while Felicity pulls herself closer to her computer. “I need to get into that van.”

Oliver and Felicity continue to talk about the van and the contents inside when the phone goes off again. Biting her lip, Emma reads the message.

**Come on, gorgeous, I won’t take no for an answer.**

“So, we get back to that house and get inside the van,” Killian suggests with a shrug. “The lock was easy enough to break into and the inside looked a lot down here, only smaller.”

Felicity frowns. “Oliver put a tracker on it before you guys caught him. Braydon takes the van wherever he goes. I can’t risk him coming outside.”

With her eyes still on the phone in her hands, Emma clears her throat to get their attention.

“I have an idea.”

She shows them the phone before placing it on the counter and waits. 

“What are you doing with the burner phone?” Oliver asks, brows furrowed, and Killian’s jaw tightens.

Opening her mouth to answer, she’s cut off by Killian’s growl. “Bloody hell, you’ve got to be joking!”

“What?” Oliver asks, and Emma sighs.

“Killian…”

“You said it was all a ruse… there was nothing to come of it!”

Oliver steps forward and holds out his hand. “Will someone please tell me what’s going on here?”

“Emma had to distract that git when I was in the van. He asked for her number so she gave him that one,” Killian explains as he motions to the phone. “And now she’s planning on accepting his request of a date so that Felicity can get into the van. Aren’t you, Swan?”

She keeps her mouth shut as Oliver looks to her before he looks to his wife. After a moment, Felicity stands next to her and she knows she’s going to have at least one person on her side.

“No,” Oliver chuckles humorlessly. “Absolutely not, it’s too dangerous.”

“I need to get into that van!” Felicity all but cries. “I _know_ there is something in there that’s going to help me.”

“I can do it,” Oliver insists. “I’ll get in and out and you’ll be in my ear… just like we always do.”

Felicity shakes her head. “You won’t know what to look for.”

“And what if Braydon comes out?” Emma asks. “We need him distracted.” The three of them go silent and she steps forward. “It’ll be no problem, especially with the three of you on the van.”

Oliver huffs and folds his arms across his chest. “With no back up for you? That’s not how we do things, Emma, and you know it!”

Feeling her frustration begin to bubble, Emma says through clenched teeth, “He’s not going to do anything to me in a restaurant full of people!”

“No, he’ll just wait until you’re outside and drag you into an alley.” Emma’s eyes widen at Oliver’s words and he chuckles before turning to Killian. “I’m guessing she didn’t tell you about the part where she was in a hospital bed next to Felicity for a week after what happened.”

Killian’s gaze snaps over to her and she turns to glare at Oliver.

“How _dare_ you!”

“This is the same exact thing that happened then, and I’m not doing it again!”

Her fists clench. “It’s not!”

“It is!” He hollers and Felicity steps in between them.

“Oliver,” Felicity starts, softly but her husband shakes his head.

“No, Killian deserves to know.” Oliver’s eyes connect with Emma’s though he speaks to her boyfriend. “Emma and I wanted to catch Cooper for what he did, and he was a lot easier to track back then. Emma decided to set him up with the whole ‘date to distract him’ thing so I could search his place for…” He chokes on his words and looks down at his feet for a moment to collect himself before continuing. “For the… b-bat he used on Felicity.”

Emma looks over at Killian to find his face hard as stone while he stares at her as Oliver continues.

“When they left the restaurant, he dragged her into the alley and slammed her head against a brick wall.” Killian’s eyes go wide before they move to her hairline, and she frowns. “He would have continued if people hadn’t happened to walk by. I was her emergency contact, when I got to the hospital, she was just arriving. Her head was split open and they thought she might have brain damage.”

Oliver walks across the platform to another computer and hits a few buttons.

“Oliver!” Felicity cries out, but he ignores her.

Emma watches in confusion until a file pops up on the big screen with her name on it. In that moment, she realizes what’s in that file and she rushes forward to try and stop him, but she’s too late. A picture of her in the hospital—a picture Oliver had insisted on taking for evidence—appears on the screen. Oliver swipes his hand, and the rest of the photos appear. Photos of her bruised and bloodied, lying in a hospital bed wearing a breathing mask. 

Looking over her shoulder, she sees Killian moving toward the computer with horror in his eyes and she steps towards him. “Killian…”

“They had to use staples to close your head back up, Emma,” Oliver whispers, and Killian’s eyes close as he breathes through his nose. “When you got out, we both agreed to never do something like that again without backup.”

The only sound in the room is the humming of the computers, and after a few tense seconds, Felicity leans forward and hits the keyboard, making the pictures disappear, but the damage was done. Emma watches as Killian clenches his jaw, while his left arm bounces. From past experiences, she knows he’s itching to hit something, and it makes her anger toward Oliver grow. 

“Ten years ago, Emma,” Oliver starts, and it takes her a moment to look at him. “You were this closed off person. You had your walls and that was fine. I respected your wishes, and despite all that, you still became one of my best friends. I’ve picked you up from bars during holidays because you were upset about not having a family to spend them with and got so drunk you couldn’t walk. I bailed you out of jail when you broke that guy's nose after he tried to kiss you, and I’ve watched you quite literally not move from your couch for three whole days because someone reminded you of your son. You’ve been like a little sister to me this whole time and it doesn’t matter that we haven’t spoken to each other in years, because you were family to me when I had none, and you still are.”

Tears prick the back of Emma’s eyes, and she presses her lips together as he turns to his wife.

“You.” He waits until Felicity looks at him to continue. “I’ve seen you lying in a hospital bed, barely recognizable. I’ve picked you up when the fear of Cooper coming back had you paralyzed. I watched you give birth to our daughter, and I’ve loved you since the moment I laid eyes on you.” He looks down at the ground and takes a deep breath. “Besides Mia, you two are the most important women in my life. We _need_ to find a way to do this that keeps everyone safe.”

“What if we split up?” Felicity asks, and they all look over to her. “That way we all have backup.”

Emma’s the one that asks, “How?”

“Someone sits in the restaurant with you.”

“Cooper knows you, so I’m sure Braydon knows you…” Emma trails off, and Felicity smiles.

“He doesn’t know _him_ ,” she answers, pointing to Killian, who raises his eyebrow. “Have Killian go sit at the bar while we go break into the van.”

Oliver and Killian exchange a look, and Emma suspects they’re having a silent conversation.

“It could work,” Oliver mumbles reluctantly.

Killian swipes at his lips with a nod. “Aye, it could.”

They stare at each other again before Oliver walks over to pick up the burner phone. With his jaw tense and a hard look in his eyes, he holds it out to Emma and says, 

“Better set up your date.”


	8. Chapter 8

Emma’s “date” was set. Her and Braydon are going to meet in two days at a local bar for drinks, only Braydon thinks her name is Jennie, and he doesn’t know that there will be a centuries old pirate watching her back. 

Her and Killian leave after that, despite the fact that she _really_ doesn’t want to, because leaving means they will be alone, and she _really_ doesn’t want to have the conversation that she knows is coming. Yes, she didn’t tell him or her parents about what really happened with her and Cooper, but it was because she didn’t want to hurt them. She never dreamed that Oliver would spill the beans, much less show Killian photos of her in that hospital bed…

She wants to apologize to him, but the air is so thick between them on the silent drive home, that she instead bites her lip and waits. It’s wishful thinking that Killian will just let it go, that he’ll just keep quiet until he’s not angry anymore, and the way his jaw ticks while he stares at the digital numbers as they rise on the elevator tells her it’s not likely. 

He slips the key into their hotel suite door with a little more force than necessary and pushes the door open before motioning for her to go inside. Emma’s already unzipping her jacket when the door slams shut, causing her to jump. Looking over her shoulder, she sees Killian stomp toward the wet bar before he reaches underneath it and practically drops the glass down.

“You’re mad,” she sighs while taking off her jacket and he snorts. 

He finishes pouring his rum and takes a gulp after he mumbles into the glass, “You’re a perceptive one.”

“Killian…”

He leans against the bar and motions to her with his glass.

“Let me ask you something, Swan. If it had just been me, if your parents weren’t there when you told the tale of your mates, would you have told the truth about what Cooper did to you?”

She wants to say yes, but deep down, she knows that probably still would have kept it from him. When she doesn’t respond, Killian chuckles darkly with a shake of his head and takes another sip of his drink. 

“That’s what I thought.”

“Look, I thought—”

“You thought you’d spare us a detail you believed to be _unimportant_ ,” he cuts in. “Is that what you were about to say?” She shrugs and his eyes narrow. “Aye, but that’s not the truth either, is it, Swan? The truth is, you didn’t tell us that little detail because if you had, you knew there would have been more of a fight to keep you from leaving, or at the very least, you’d have the entire family insisting upon coming along. But that’s neither here nor there, and I get it. I may not like it, but I get it. No, what I’m mad about is that once we crossed the town line, you should have told me!” He hisses, his fingers tightening around his glass. “And you bloody well shouldn’t have lied to me! You said he was just a man… _just a man_ doesn’t do what he did to you… the way you looked in those photos…”

He trails off, his face contorting in a mixture of pain and disgust and she steps forward.

“You should have never seen those photos!”

“Right, because if it were up to you, I would have never known they existed!”

Running her hands through her hair, she shakes her head and mutters, “I don’t have to deal with this.”

She starts to walk toward the bedroom when she sees from the corner of her eye Killian take another sip of his rum with a snort.

“And she’s off.”

Emma stops and turns back to him.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

He pushes himself forward and uses his glass to point to her.

“It means that no matter what anyone does, no matter what _I_ do, your first instinct is still to run.”

She blinks.

“I’m… I’m not running… I’m…”

“You’re what?” He asks, sarcastically. “Going for a light jog?”

This time it’s Emma that chuckles darkly.

“I knew you would act this way, and that’s why I didn’t tell you! I didn’t want you worrying every time we went out!” 

“I worry because that’s my job!” he hollers. “It’s my job to make sure you stay protected! Fuck, Emma, don’t you realize that?” 

“I can take care of myself, when are _you_ going to realize _that_?!”

Killian’s jaw tightens. “Are you ever going to trust me?”

Her brow furrows. “Of course I trust you!”

“No, you don’t,” he answers while shaking his head. “You think you do, but you don’t, not really, and I’m bloody tired of it.”

She watches as he turns from her, places his glass on the bar, and begins to walk toward the door. With her eyes wide, she takes a step closer and asks in a panic, “Where are you going?”

He whips around, his brows raised with his jacket half pulled off and her shoulders sag in relief. For a quick moment, she thought he was going to leave, that he was finally done with her. Her heart is still hammering in her chest. But now she sees he was simply taking his jacket off to hang it in the closet by the door. 

“Where did you think I was going? Did you think I was leaving?” She looks to the floor and he growls, “Look me in the eye and tell me you didn’t just think I was going to leave.”

Emma presses her lips together and squares her shoulders while Killian yanks his jacket off and throws it to the ground.

“I am _not_ Baelfire!” he screams, and her mouth falls open. “I will _not_ leave you. Doesn’t matter what you’ve done, doesn’t matter what you do… I couldn’t give two fucks about destiny or prophecies. I know he did what he believed was best at the time, but I guess that means he’s a better man than I, because I wouldn’t have… I _couldn’t_ have.” He stalks closer to her with every word until he’s standing right before her. “One of the benefits of being a pirate: I’m completely selfish, and there is nothing in this realm or any other that would make it worth losing you, so stop punishing me for his mistakes!”

She balks at that. “I’m not punishing you!”

“You are!” he accuses. “Every time you push me away, every time you keep something important from me, every time you think I’ll leave, that’s you punishing me!”

Tears threaten to spill from her eyes and her instincts tell her she needs to get out of here. He’s getting too real and she can’t do real… she starts to back away, but Killian grasps her arm before she can go anywhere.

“No, I’m not letting you run, Emma.”

She starts feeling trapped, and out of habit, she lashes out. 

Shoving against Killian’s chest, she growls, “Why do you have to do this?! I was _fine_! My life was _fine_ before you showed up and twisted it all around! You make me question everything and make me feel—” She stops herself and his eyes widen. Feeling even more frustration, she shoves him again, but with less pressure. “You were supposed to be like everyone else, you were supposed to _leave_! But you didn’t, you came back and ever since then my life has been turned upside down! Now all I can think about whenever there’s a crisis is how terrified I am of losing you, and how the thought alone almost breaks me because of how much I love you.” Killian’s entire body goes stiff and tears run down her cheeks while she shakes her head. “You can’t just come into somebody’s life and…” She searches for the right words, and when they don’t come, she weakly shoves him again. “You were supposed to be like everyone else! You were supposed to leave.”

His lips begin to slowly pull into a smile and he mumbles, “Never.”

She wonders why he’s smiling, why he isn’t angry anymore, why after everything she’s said he’s—Emma’s head snaps up and her heart pounds. She’s done it… she’s told him she loves him, and she’s _terrified_ , because her entire life her heart has never been whole, it has cracks from every heartbreak, and she cannot weather another crack.

_The cops slap handcuffs on her and she realizes Neal has left her to take the fall._

Killian reaches for her, effectively healing that crack. 

“No,” she whispers in fear.

_Graham collapses in her arms and dies_.

Killian’s fingers wrap around her wrist, healing that crack too.

“I can’t…” She whispers, though her left hand moves to his chest.

_Walsh turns into a flying monkey and tries to kill her._

Killian pulls her to him to hold her in his arms and she’s never been more scared as he heals yet another crack. Her chest begins to heave when his hand and prosthesis move to cup her face as she looks up at him. 

“I love you, too.”

Before he’s even finished with his syllables, Emma’s fisting his shirt and pulling him in for a kiss. He doesn’t hesitate to respond as she wraps her arms around his shoulders and molds their bodies together. They nip and suck each other’s lips, both giving as much as they get and Emma’s hands move down Killian’s chest until she finds the buttons on his waist coat. She begins to unbutton them as he guides her backwards until she hits a wall. A gasp falls past her lips when Killian pins her hands above her head and kisses his way down her jaw. 

“Oh, god,” Emma practically sobs as he sucks at the pulse point on her neck. 

He answers with a moan while he grinds his hips into her, allowing her to feel how ready he is for her. Killian moves his right hand to tangle in her hair and she gasps as he yanks her head to the side so that he can have better access while she feels his prosthesis moves under her shirt. She tries to fumble with the buttons on his shirt, but she’s shaking so badly that when he finally pulls back so she can see, she simply grips the fabric and rips it open, and before the buttons can even hit the ground, her fingers are caressing his chest hair.

_Thump thump, thump thump, thump thump._

Killian pulls her shirt up over her head and latches his lips back onto hers while his hand and prosthesis move to her breasts. They swallow each other’s moans and she tangles her fingers in the back of his hair while he pushes his pelvis into her. She can barely register the feeling of hands on the back of her thighs before she’s being hoisted up into his arms. He pulls them away from the wall and her mind turns to mush when he sucks her tongue into his mouth. 

Wrapping her left arm around his shoulders to hold herself up, Emma reaches in between them with her right to palm him over his jeans and a small giggle passes her lips as Killian stumbles just a little. She falls back onto the couch with him following her, landing between her legs while she continues to palm him. 

He rests his forehead against hers and breathes against her lips, “Bloody hell.”

They reach for each other’s pants at the same time, each working frantically to unbutton and remove them, so that when they are finished Killian’s jeans are pulled down only just enough and Emma still has one pant leg on. She watches as he grips his cock, his hand moving up and down twice before their eyes connect. With a smile, she moves her hands to cup his face as he lines himself up at her entrance. 

Emma swipes her thumb across the scar on his cheek and Killian leans forward, his lips barely brushing against hers as he pushes himself forward. They both moan, and after he’s fully inside of her, he pauses to rest his forehead on her collarbone.

“Christ, Emma,” he nearly sobs, and she nods in agreement, unable to remember if she’s ever felt so full before in her life.

She pulls his face back to hers and she hooks her legs around his back as he begins to thrust into her. Their teeth scrape together, and they have to move a few times to get the right angle on the couch, but when they do, their sounds echo off the walls and Emma’s fingers twist in its leather. His mouth travels back down her neck while he moves faster and she lifts her hips to meet his pace. She bites her lip and tries not to be louder than she already is, but then he pushes the cup of her bra down with his nose and closes his lips around her nipple and she lets out a loud mewl. Normally, she’d be embarrassed, since she was always quiet when it came to sex, but with Killian she can’t be quiet even if she tries.

Every inch of her skin is on fire and she can feel him _everywhere_. It’s never been like that with… _anyone,_ and it’s making her heart swell. Emma knew from the moment they met that he could make her feel things, but to make her feel emotional _while_ also making her face numb… that’s amazing.

He grunts and moves his hips even faster, and her back arches. 

“Oh, fuck… perfect!”

“So bloody perfect,” he groans, hitting each word with a thrust. A squeak passes her lips and he moves a fraction of an inch to change angles. “Come on, love, give it to me!”

With a gulp, she nods and her nails dig into his back while she feels herself climbing higher and higher. 

“Oh _god_!”

Emma falls apart fast and slow at the same time and she feels it all the way down to her toes. There are pin pricks all over her skin and she melts into the couch, barely able to keep her legs wrapped around Killian’s waist as she comes down.

“Beautiful,” he whispers into her neck, kissing his way up to her lips. “You are so beautiful when you fall apart for me.”

With an almost drunken smile, Emma wraps her arms around Killian to bring him down to her and finds the energy to lift her hips again. 

“I love you,” she mumbles against his lips and she feels his body twitch. She feels his mouth open to respond, but she kisses him to silence him and clenches herself around him. “I love you so much.”

Killian buries his face in her neck and his thrusts become erratic, before he lets out a strangled groan and spills himself inside of her. When he collapses on top of her Emma’s sure she finally knows what heaven feels like.

She doesn’t know how long they lay there before he pushes himself up to look at her. Neither of them say a word as they stare into each other’s eyes, their breathing slowing down yet still faster than normal, and all of a sudden she realizes the awkward position the lower half of her body is in. One leg is on the floor with the other wrapped around his waist, while he’s half kneeling and half stretched out. 

They wasted so much time wanting it to be perfect, to not be something that just _happened_ , and here they are, lying on a couch in the middle of a hotel room nearly fully clothed after having just said I love you to each other for the first time. 

Her lips spread into a smile, and like he’s reading her mind, Killian’s follow suit, and soon they are both laughing.

* * *

  
Emma wakes up the next morning when the clock on her bedside table reads just after nine. Giving a small groan, she begins to stretch and a tiny hiss falls past her lips. Her limbs are slightly stiff, her core throbbing, and she can feel a dull ache on the inside of her thighs from when she wrapped her legs around Killian’s hips. After their adventure on the couch, they moved to the bed, where they took their time and whispered soft words to each other. There were even a few tears shed when she really let herself open up and feel how much he loved her and she loved him, and he kissed each one of them away, vowing to never leave her and healing another crack. 

Looking to her left, she’s surprised to see Killian still asleep next to her, but then she remembers how he had tried to get up when the sun rose like he normally does, and she’d enticed him back to bed for another round of her new favorite activity, so she figures he must be really tired.

She softly gets out of bed, picking up Killian’s discarded button up as she makes her way to the bathroom to go through her morning routine. After she’s done, she walks out to the common area and reaches for the hotel phone. As she orders them breakfast, she picks up the clothes they left from last night and tosses them into a corner. 

It’s as room service is confirming her order that she hears Killian emerge from the bedroom wearing nothing but his black boxer briefs. She shivers as she feels him press a light kiss to the side of her neck before he sits down on the couch. 

“Breakfast?” he asks while she hangs up the phone.

Nodding, she sits and places her legs across his lap.

“Yeah, it seems _someone_ made me work up an appetite.” 

Killian wiggles his eyebrows at her as he leans forward and she giggles while he pulls her close to him. She’s still sore from the night before and earlier that morning, but if he wanted her again she’d work through it, because there is nothing stopping her. He doesn’t take it any further than kissing, however, and they both just enjoy the feel of being in each other’s arms until their food arrives.

When it does, Killian’s the one who answers the door and she has to clear her throat when the girl stares a little too long at her boyfriend. He arches his brow at her as she closes the door and she simply shrugs before pushing the cart to the table.

They sit there eating their breakfast, taking time to feed each other a piece of fruit here and there and kiss away syrup that’s dribbled down a chin, but when she catches sight of his leather jacket still on the floor by the wet bar, she freezes. She had let herself forget that the reason they are so happy now is because she upset him the night before.

Looking down at her plate, she mumbles, “You were really angry.”

Killian stills for a moment before he takes a sip of his coffee and nods.

“Aye, I was.”

She presses her lips together and he sighs. He reaches for his napkin and she turns to him with her hands in her lap.

“I should have told you about what happened with Cooper.” His jaw clenches and she moves forward to be closer to him. “I don’t mean to punish you for Neal’s mistakes. I do trust you, Killian. You are, without a doubt, the only person in my life that has never left my side, but sometimes I still struggle with my walls.”

He turns to her, his hand and stump going to the side of her thighs and he tells her, “I like your walls… I like being the one to break them down.”

Emma smiles, her hands moving to rest either side of his neck.

“And you are, more than you know.” She places a soft kiss to his lips and continues, “You break them down every day. I love you, Killian.”

His eyes close, and he puffs out a breath before a small, beautiful smile graces his face.

“I love you, too, Emma.”

They kiss again and he pulls back to reach up and brush her hair away from her forehead. 

“Is this from him?” He asks while his thumb traces over the scar on her hairline.

She nods.

“How did you know? My hair mostly covers it…”

He presses his lips against her scar before softly kissing the tip of her nose.

“Do not underestimate my ability to examine you when you’re not looking, love. I’ve barely been able to keep my eyes off of you since the moment we met.” Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she arches her brow as he licks his bottom lip and finishes, “And now that I’ve finally had you, I plan on examining _every_ inch of you.”

* * *

“Oh my _god_!” Emma gasps before collapsing face down onto the bed.

She waits until Killian pulls himself from her, a low hiss falling from both of their lips before he moves from behind her to lay by her side. 

“Aye,” Killian pants in agreement. 

When she turns her head toward him, she sees his skin is covered in the same layer of sweat that hers is, and that his hair is matted to his forehead the same way hers is matted to her back. 

“I think you broke me.” She groans as she tries to move, only to fall back down on her stomach. 

“I certainly hope not,” he chuckles breathlessly. 

“Well,” she brushes her hair out of her face and rests her head on her hands, “My legs definitely aren’t working for the foreseeable future.”

“Legs are overrated,” he replies with a shrug. 

For a few moments, the only sounds that fill the room are their labored breaths, and she takes a few seconds to examine his profile. There’s no doubt that she’s always been attracted to Killian, with his jawline forever covered in just the right amount of stubble, his perfect lips, his eyes…

Emma shivers as she thinks about his eyes. The first time she noticed how blue they were had been at the lake in the Enchanted Forest. Those eyes haunted her dreams for days after she got home and now a day doesn’t go by where she doesn’t see them staring back at her.

Finding the strength to push herself forward, she lays across Killian’s chest, barely giving him a chance to react before she’s mumbling against his lips, “Let’s do it again.”

* * *

Emma lays sideways on the bed using Killian’s legs as a pillow with nothing more than a sheet thrown over her. Her heart is pounding and their panting breaths are once again the only sound that fills the room. She runs a hand over her sweaty forehead before she reaches back to brush her fingers against his calf. Her entire body is tingling and her muscles feel like goo, but she _needs_ to feel his skin.

“Are we dead?”

Killian chuckles in between trying to catch his breath and reaches down to drape a hand over her shoulder.

“If we are, this is bloody heaven.”

Never in her life has she spent an entire day in bed having sex—one night stands were more for scratching an itch—and she’s so glad it’s something she can now check off her list, because despite being unable to feel anything but tingles pricking all over her body, she doesn’t regret any of it. And the fact that it’s with Killian makes it all the more special.

_I really need to get my own place_.

“What time is it?”

She feels Killian move before he drops back down and says, “A little after seven.” 

As if on cue, her stomach growls and she closes her eyes in embarrassment. “We should probably eat something.”

“Aye.” He pauses. “Give us a moment to gain the strength to move, princess.”

They both laugh and her fingers find his while they relax for a minute longer.

* * *

Killian comes out of the bathroom in nothing but his black jeans while she looks through takeout menus. She’s just about to ask him what he’s in the mood to eat—knowing he’s going to smirk and say her—when she hears him call out to her.

“Uh, Swan.” 

She looks up in time to see him motion toward the balcony. Her eyes go wide when she sees the Green Arrow standing there, giving a little wave. Pressing her lips together, she feels the anger she has toward him over what he did the night before rising up again and takes a deep breath. Yes, she admits she should have told Killian the truth, but there’s no excuse for Oliver showing him the pictures.

“It’s probably better I put some pants on before I punch him again.”

Killian chuckles at her words and she moves to the bedroom as Killian opens the balcony doors. Grabbing her sleep shorts, she pulls them on quickly and makes sure the buttons of Killian’s shirt are covering her chest. When she walks back out to the living room, Oliver and Killian are conversing in low tones.

“That’s… wow.” Oliver—who’s hood is now pulled down—blows out a puff of air and shakes his head. “That’s deep, Jones.” 

He nods in response before they both notice that she’s returned, and Killian mumbles, “I’ll give you two a minute.”

He gives Oliver a pat on the shoulder and walks out of the room. 

Folding her arms across her chest, she asks, “Does Felicity know you’re out tonight?”

“Yes,” he answers with a roll of his eyes. “She always knows when I go out.”

He lifts his hand to motion to the device in his ear and she waits a moment before continuing. 

“What do you want Oliver?”

Scratching the back of his neck, he chuckles, “Well, I guess that answers the question of if you’re still mad at me.” She arches a brow and he sighs, “Come on, Emma. You can’t tell me that he didn’t deserve to know the truth about what happened.”

“Yes, he did. But you shouldn’t have shown him those pictures. That was completely uncalled for! Do you think I want him to have that image in his head?”

“Do you think the visions he would have come up with would have been any better?” She huffs but doesn’t say anything and Oliver puts his hands up as he steps forward. “I _am_ sorry, though. I know I shouldn’t have done that… but—” He stops with a shake of his head and places his bow down on the coffee table. “All I could see in my mind was you in that hospital bed again, and yes, I know, you can take care of yourself and that you’ve probably done more dangerous things back in Storybrooke with magic and… _dragons_ , but I only know what I saw from before, and I didn’t want that to happen again.”

His voice is filled with worry and pleading, and the anger she felt toward him begins to melt away. The entire time she’s known Oliver she’s also known how protective he is, and how he has always felt responsible for taking care of everyone around him… she also knows that he still feels guilt over what happened to her, and while she told him he shouldn’t, and that she doesn’t blame him, _he_ still does.

He and Killian are a lot alike in that aspect.

“I get it,” she mumbles, her arms dropping to her sides. “I don’t like it, but I get it.” Oliver gives her a small smile and she walks over to him, her eyes moving over his outfit before she lets out a small laugh. “I still think you’re crazy for doing this.”

Oliver snorts. “You’re a princess that was born in another realm and you think _I’m_ crazy?” She punches him lightly in the shoulder and he laughs. A smirk pulls at his lips while he motions to where Killian disappeared to. “Looks like you two made up.”

Her jaw drops and a sputtering sound that falls from her lips.

“Jesus, Ollie. I’m very convinced you’re a twelve-year-old girl in a man’s body.” He wiggles his eyebrows at her and she shoves him back before turning to pick up his bow, surprised at how heavy it is. “Are you going to let me shoot this thing or what?”

Emma’s fingers shift and she hits a button, causing the bow to beep and fold back up in her hand on its own. With wide eyes and a small gasp, she shoves it back into Oliver’s arms, making him chuckle.

“Maybe.”

She watches as he puts on his eye mask and lifts up his hood, the full costume of the Green Arrow back in place and she walks him to the balcony doors. 

“We’ll come by tomorrow evening a few hours before I have to meet with Braydon to go over the plan one more time.” He nods while he opens the door and she stops him. “Be careful out there, Ollie.”

He turns back to her with a smile and points to his ear. “Don’t worry, I always have my good luck charm with me.”


	9. Chapter 9

They walk into Oliver’s office a few hours before her ‘date’ and she shoots off a text to her friend.

**We’re here. Do we need a super secret password to get your super secret passageway to work? - E**

**It’s already open, smart ass. - O**

Emma snickers, and as they step into the elevator she shows Killian her phone, which makes him chuckle.

“Do you enjoy giving him a hard time?”

She shrugs. “It’s fun.”

A yawn passes her lips and he raises a brow. “I told you we should have taken a nap, love.”

After Henry had called and woke them up early, they went out to breakfast and walked around Star City for a little until she could barely keep her eyes open, then Killian all but forced them to go back to the hotel. He suggested a nap, and she suggested much more pleasurable activities. She, of course, won the argument.

“What fun would have that been?”

They share a laugh as they step off the elevator and into the basement. When they walk up onto the platform, Felicity swivels around in her chair to face them with a big grin on her face.

“And what did you two do on your day off?”

She wiggles her eyebrows, and Emma shakes her head while Killian scratches the back of his ear. 

Ignoring their friend’s question, she asks, “Where’s Ollie?”

“Here.” They all turn to the left to see Oliver walking up in his Green Arrow costume—minus the mask and hood—with a garment bag in one hand and a box in the other. “You ready for this?”

With a shrug, she says, “Ready as I’ll ever be. What’s that?”

“Your honey trap dress. Felicity bought it.”

Oliver hands her the garment bag and she raises an eyebrow.

“Yeah, how does it look?”

Felicity and Oliver speak at the same time.

“It’s beautiful!”

“It’s too short.”

“That’s why it’s called a honey _trap_ , Ollie,” Emma explains with a sarcastic pat on his arm, “because the male ego sees a short skirt and can’t think straight. It’s the perfect distraction.” 

Killian snorts while Oliver rolls his eyes before placing the box on a table next to the computers and opens it.

“We’re going to set you guys up with some coms,” Felicity explains while pointing to the box. “That way we can all stay connected and alert.”

Oliver turns around and folds his arms across his chest.

“Alright, let’s go over this one more time.”

* * *

Emma steps out of her car and places her purse on her shoulder as she hears the beep from her earpiece.

_“Overwatch is online… Arrow?”_

_“Here.”_

_“Hook?”_

_“Aye.”_

A small breath passes her lips at the sound of his voice. She hasn’t seen him since they left the basement. The three of them were going to follow her so that she wouldn’t be seen with them, so, she gave him a kiss and he told her to be careful before she got into the elevator.

_“Princess?”_

Emma falters in her steps and hisses, “Really?”

They all laugh and then Felicity explains, _“You needed a code name, and I thought it worked well.”_

Rolling her eyes, she listens to Felicity explaining where the van is just before she hears the sound of an arrow being shot in the distance. She walks into The Tavern and looks around carefully before saying, “I’m in.”

_“Hook, you’re up. Wait two minutes and go in, try not to stand out.”_

_“I’ll do my best, lass.”_

Once Emma spots Braydon, she forces a smile and walks forward. 

“Hey there, beautiful,” he greets without even bothering to stand. “I’m so glad you could make it.”

“Well, you _were_ rather persistent.”

She looks over Braydon’s shoulder just in time to see Killian enter. Their eyes connect for a moment before she puts her focus back on Braydon and forces another smile.

“I always am when there’s something that I want.”

His words send a chill down her spine and she has to clench her fists together to keep from punching him in the face. 

_“Guys,”_ Felicity’s voice echoes in her ear. _“We’re in the van. We’re going to mute our side so it’s not a distraction, but we’ll still be able to hear you if you need anything.”_

Emma doesn’t react, simply keeping her attention on the man in front of her. But after twenty minutes, she wanted to rip her ears off. She’s been on worse honey trap dates—once a skip did a puppet show for her—but that was before she started dating a centuries old pirate who’s entertaining and funny and allows her to get a word in. Her eyes flicker to said pirate, who is sitting at the bar nursing a beer while Braydon talks about himself and the cars he likes.

_“Jesus.”_ Oliver beeps in. _“Is this guy serious? He’s boring me and I’m barely paying attention.”_

Emma presses her lips together in an attempt to hold back her snort. 

_“I’ve had more interesting conversations with sea creatures that couldn’t talk,”_ Killian beeps in next, his voice a little mumbled. 

“So, maybe you’d like to go for a _ride_ sometime,” Braydon suggests with a smirk, and she can barely contain her eye roll. “It’s a hemi.”

There’s another beep before Oliver snorts, _“A hemi? What does he think this is,_ The Fast and the Furious _?”_

_“Maybe he’s compensating for something else, mate.”_

Emma bites her lip to keep from laughing as Braydon continues to talk. By the time Felicity beeps in to say they are done, she feels like it’s been an hour, when in reality it’s only been minutes, and her shoulders finally relax.

_Time to end this shitshow._

Clearing her throat, she sits back, “You know, it’s loud in here and—”

“You want to go somewhere a little quieter?”

_“Over my bloody dead body!”_

With a smile, she shakes her head.

“It’s late, and I’m actually pretty tired. Thank you for the drink, Braydon.”

He slumps back in his chair and presses his lips together while she turns to grab her coat. But before she can move, a hand takes hold of her arm. She looks down at it before her eyes move back up to him, and she glares.

“Are you sure about that… Emma?”

Her body instantly goes tense and her eyes shoot over to Killian at the bar. She watches as he reaches up to his ear with his brow furrowed and it’s then she realizes that no one has reacted to Braydon using her real name.

_The coms…_

“What are you—”

“Let’s stop with the games, shall we?” 

There’s a sick smile on his face and when she tries to yank her wrist back, his grip tightens. 

“Let go of me,” she hisses while he reaches into his pocket.

With a shake of his head, he pulls out a cell and brings it to his ear. 

“I’ve got her.”

There’s a moment that passes where she assumes he is listening to whoever is on the other line and he opens his mouth to respond, but before he can, he’s yanked out of his seat and shoved away by a very pissed off Killian.

“Don’t you bloody _touch_ her!”

As she stands, Killian steps toward Braydon, who chuckles before putting the phone to his ear again. 

“A friend… no… of course.” He puts the phone away and smirks her way. He turns to grab his jacket and throws it over his shoulders. “It’s a shame, Emma. If you weren’t such an uptight bit—“

He never gets a chance to finish because Killian pulls his fist back and punches him square in the jaw. Braydon falls to the ground, cradling his face in his hands, and Emma has just enough time to notice the bouncers heading toward them before she yanks on Killian’s arm and pulls him out of there.

“Was that necessary?” Emma asks him in a hiss once they are outside.

“Completely.” He huffs. “What the bloody hell happened? I stopped being able to hear you.”

“I don’t know.” She reaches up to tap the com in her ear. “Arrow? Overwatch? Can you guys hear us?”

Her questions are met with static, and she taps it again, about to speak once more when there’s a beep.

_“Hello, Emma.”_

Killian’s eyes connect with hers and she swallows.

“Cooper.”

_“I’m so glad you remember me. I certainly remember you.”_

“I’m honored.”

She watches as Killian’s jaw locks, and they both wait for Cooper to respond.

_“I’m the one that should be honored. You came back to Star City, for the first time in years, just to see me?”_

Looking around, she says, “Yeah, well, call me nostalgic.”

_“Then you’ll have no problem doing an old friend a favor.”_ Emma and Killian lock eyes and Cooper continues. “ _There’s a briefcase with a chip inside it, located somewhere in Oliver’s bunker.”_

Her body goes tense.

“What bunker?”

He chuckles.

_“Come now, Emma. Let’s not lie to each other. Find the briefcase and bring it to me at Palmer Tech. You have one hour.”_

“And if I don’t?”

_“While I would love to go into the details with you, Emma, I’m afraid I have to run. Me and an old girlfriend have to catch up.”_

Emma’s eyes go wide and Killian springs down the street as the coms beep. She follows him to where the van is parked, and when they round the corner to the alley they find Oliver on the ground next to a dumpster. They both rush over to him, Emma kneeling down as Killian flips him over.

“Mate,” he breathes out, his hand lightly slapping Oliver’s face while Emma’s gaze moves to the street.

There are people walking by, and while most of them continue on, some stop to stare for a moment, and she has to move so Oliver’s covered from their gaze.

“Come on,” she breathes out while she moves to grab her friend. “We have to get him back to the bunker before someone sees.”

* * *

Oliver awakes in the bunker with a yell for his wife, and it takes the combined efforts of both Emma and Killian to calm him down so he can explain what happened.

“It was a set up,” Oliver growls, his fists clenching as he paces back and forth. “It was all a fucking set up!” Emma jumps as he flips a small table before Killian approaches him and places a hand on his shoulder. After a moment, Oliver takes a deep breath and asks, “What did he say again?”

“He said he wanted a briefcase… that it was here and that we had an hour to bring it to him at Felicity’s work.” Oliver starts to move and Emma’s brow furrows. “Do you know the briefcase he’s talking about?”

He rips open a cabinet and her eyes go wide when she sees it’s filled with weapons.

“No,” he says shortly.

“Then what are you doing?” She watches as he takes out a gun, and her jaw drops when he slaps a barrel of bullets into it. “Ollie…” He grabs a few arrows after he hands the gun off to Killian and she nearly chokes as Killian checks the safety before hiding it in the back of his jeans. “Stop! You don’t need a gun—Oliver, he doesn’t need a gun!”

Oliver grabs a box of extra bullets and toss them to Killian, who catches them and places them on the inside of his jacket. Feeling her frustration grow, Emma takes a step toward her boyfriend and tries to plead with him.

“Killian, tell him we don’t have to do this.”

“He can’t,” Oliver finally answers while he packs arrows in his quiver.

“What do you mean he can’t?” She turns back to Killian. “Tell him…”

“Tell him what, love?” He asks with a shrug. “Not to? Because if it were you, I’d be doing the same thing.”

She bites her bottom lip and shakes her head. “Cooper said he wants a briefcase… if we can just find it then we can make a plan to—”

“I have a plan,” Oliver mumbles, slapping his bow onto his back.

He tries to walk past her, but she stands in front of him with her hands up.

“What are you going to do? Kill him?”

“He’s not just going to hand her over if we give him that briefcase! You _know_ how he is!” His voice drips with desperation as he points to Felicity’s chair. “I promised her… I promised I would protect her and that he wouldn’t get her!” 

There are tears in his eyes and it breaks Emma’s heart. With a tilt of her head, she places her hand on Oliver’s shoulder and speaks softly.

“He needs her for something, Ollie, or else he would have just come and got the briefcase himself. He’s not going to harm her until he gets what he wants…” Oliver finally looks her in the eye, and she nods. “Let me find the briefcase, just so we have a bargaining chip.”

He doesn’t answer right away; instead, his jaw clenches and he looks to Killian. From the corner of her eye, she sees her boyfriend nod before Oliver’s gaze moves back to her.

“Five minutes.”

* * *

Emma and Killian enter the main doors of Palmer Tech while Oliver enters through the back. With the briefcase in her right hand, Emma rushes to the welcome desk to find two guards sprawled out on the ground. She checks their pulses and sighs in relief when she feels heartbeats under her fingers. 

Before she can stand, she hears a voice growl, “Don’t move!”

Her gaze snaps up to see a man with a gun held to the back of Killian’s head and her eyes widen. He holds his hand and hook up, and before she can reach for her own gun, the whiz of an arrow echoes and the man yells out in pain. Killian quickly turns, throwing his left arm around to knock the man out with his hook.

Oliver motions over his shoulder to the stairwell and Emma and Killian follow quickly. They reach the fifth floor in record time and before they push through the door, Oliver pulls an arrow from his quiver and Killian takes the gun out from the back of his jeans.

From the end of the hall, a voice calls out, “In here, Arrow!”

The three of them slowly walk down the hall toward Felicity’s office, tension heavy in the air. The night had started on such a high note; they had been _certain_ they would break into that van, get the information they needed, and then go back to the bunker to celebrate. Maybe Emma would even spar with Oliver. But they had messed up somehow, and now they have to save their friend from an abusive asshole. _Again._

When they reach the end of the hall, they look through the glass wall to see Felicity tied to a chair. She has tears in her eyes and her shoulders are hunched in fear while Cooper stands behind her. 

“Felicity,” Oliver breathes out before holding his bow up higher, only to stop when Cooper places a gun to the back of her head.

“Stay where you are and throw your weapons to me.” Cooper growls. The three of them exchange a look before they each lower their weapons and toss them forward as Cooper continues, “No reason to hide, Oliver, we’re all friends here. Lower your hood.” His eyes move to Emma and he smiles sickly. “Hello Emma, it’s good to see you again. I thought I lost my chance after last time…”

Emma clenches her fists and presses her lips together. Visions from the last time she saw Cooper flash through her mind: how he led her to an alley and pretended to lean in for a kiss, only to grab her by the back of her head and slam her face into the wall. She remembers how the only thing she could think of in that moment was a crying baby boy she had never even looked at.

“Tell me…” He tilts his head with a smirk. “How’s your head?”

Killian growls and takes a step forward, which causes Cooper to press the gun harder against Felicity’s skull.

“Hook,” Oliver warns, his mask and hood gone.

“Is that my briefcase? Bring it to me, darling. I’m a bit occupied at the moment.”

“And if I don’t?”

Cooper narrows his eyes at her question. “If you don’t, the entire world will find out that Oliver Queen is the Green Arrow.”

Emma’s eyes meet Oliver’s, and his jaw clenches. She knows that he doesn’t care about being exposed as long as it means that Felicity is safe… but she can’t risk her friend throwing his life away over a stupid chip, and she trusts that Felicity has a plan.

Stepping forward, she ignores both Oliver and Killian’s protests and places the briefcase on the table. Cooper presses his lips together in a mock kiss and her stomach turns as she backs away. He pushes the briefcase toward Felicity and tells her to open it. When she doesn’t move right away, he yanks her head back by her ponytail and she lets out a small yelp. Oliver growls as he and Killian move forward, only to stop when Cooper raises his gun and aims it at Oliver.

“Felicity, don’t…” Oliver begs.

When she still doesn’t move, Cooper lifts the gun higher and growls, “Open the case, Felicity, or the first bullet goes into your husband’s head!” 

“I need my hands, jackass!” She yells and Cooper makes a frustrated noise. 

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a knife before putting it under the rope on her right wrist and cutting it free, then turns her chair back toward the briefcase.

“Do it!”

Felicity reaches forward with her free hand to place her thumb print on the lock, and it pops open instantly. Cooper smiles, placing the knife on the table and moves to take the briefcase. Emma smirks.

_Big mistake._

Felicity grabs the knife and jams it into Cooper’s thigh. Everything happens quickly after that. Cooper shouts in pain and backhands Felicity, and Emma, Oliver, and Killian rush forward. He grabs the case and turns to run, just as Emma and Killian grab for their guns on the floor.

“It’s over, Cooper!” Emma yells. “Drop the case!”

His eyes dart frantically around the room, blood dripping from his wound to the floor, before he lifts his left leg with a grunt and kicks Felicity’s chair over. Oliver moves to his wife and Emma runs after Cooper.

“Swan!” 

She ignores Killian’s call and follows the blood trail to a stairwell. She can hear faint footsteps behind her and Killian once again calling out to her, but she doesn’t stop—she can’t. She _has_ to get Cooper.

Shoving the door open, she runs out into the garage just in time to see Cooper driving away in the van. Cursing under her breath, she sprints over to a random car and tries the door.

Locked.

“Emma!” Killian’s voice echoes through the garage and he catches up to her as she breaks the window open with the butt of her gun. “What the bloody hell do you think you’re doing?”

“He has the chip,” she growls, reaching in to unlock the door. “He knows who Oliver is. We can’t let him get away.”

Killian curses before rushing to the passenger seat while she hotwires the car. When it roars to life, Emma barely has the door shut before she speeds out of the parking garage, tires screeching in her wake. They catch up to Cooper on the main road and she maneuvers in and out of traffic to follow him around a right turn.

With a hiss, his hand grabbing for the dashboard, Killian warns, “Swan…”

“He’ll never stop,” she argues. “Felicity will figure out a way to deactivate the chip, but he’ll just come back.”

She shifts gears and presses her foot down on the gas. She taps his bumper before jerking the wheel to the right and pulling up alongside the van. Cooper glares at them and yanks on his steering wheel, slamming the van into the side of the car. 

“Bloody hell!”

Emma looks over to see Killian reach for the gun in his jacket. He hits the already cracked passenger window with his hook and holds the gun out, shooting at Cooper’s van. 

“The tires.”

He nods before aiming the gun down and shooting. She downshifts as the van spins out, and slams on the breaks when it crashes into a side rail. They both get out, staring at the van for a moment before Emma draws her own weapon and advances. She sees Cooper shaking his head as though to clear it, and stuffs her gun in the back of her jeans so she can rip the door open. Grabbing his arm, she roughly yanks on him so he falls out of the vehicle with a grunt.

Cooper attempts to move up onto his knees and yells, “You fucking bitch!”

Before she can retaliate, Killian appears and punches him in the face. He yanks Cooper up onto his feet, making him groan in pain, and Emma walks up and knees in him the groin.

“That’s for Felicity. You should have stayed away.”

Cooper laughs through his pain and glares. “You think you’re such a badass now, don’t you? You’ll always be _nothing_ , no matter how hard you try.” Emma sees red and Cooper smirks. “And don’t forget who put your face through that brick wall.”

Killian growls and sticks the tip of his hook into the wound on Cooper’s thigh after slamming his face onto the hood of the van. When Cooper lifts his head there’s blood flowing from his nose, and Emma knees him again, this time in the stomach. He lets out a groan of pain and hunches forward only to have Killian pull him back up and threaten him.

“I should kill you for what you did to her.”

Cooper gets his right arm free and pulls it back to swing at Killian. Emma grabs his hand before he can make contact and twists his wrist until she hears a crack. Cooper screams, and Killian allows him to fall to the ground cradling his broken wrist to his chest. 

Feeling anger still coursing through her, Emma steps forward to punch him again when Killian stops her.

“Swan, we’ve done enough.”

“I haven’t even come _close_ to enough,” she hisses, glaring down at the broken man on the ground.

“Aye, but this isn’t you… and this isn’t me, not anymore.”

With her eyes still on Cooper she says, “He took her. He needs to pay.”

“Emma, listen to your words.”

She blinks up at Killian to find his brows knitted together, and it’s like a rush of cold water is thrown on her. Her gaze moves back down to Cooper and a stuttering breath passes her lips.

_This is wrong._

The sound of a motorcycle makes them both look to their left and Killian steps in front of her while she presses her lips together, trying to comprehend what she almost did. Oliver appears from behind the van with his bow drawn, Felicity behind him. When he sees them, his shoulders sag and he drops the bow.

“What happened?”

“It’s over,” Emma mumbles.

Oliver walks up, his eyes widening slightly when he sees the state of Cooper, and Emma looks down in shame. Her friend kneels in front of the unconscious man to handcuff him and Felicity steps up.

“Oliver, he knows who you are. If we have him arrested, he’ll tell everyone.”

He shakes his head and stands. “It doesn’t matter.”

“Yes it does!” Felicity cries. “Oliver, you wouldn’t be able to help anymore. They’ll _have_ to arrest you… they’ll take you away from me and Mia!”

Oliver shushes his wife and pulls her into his arms. Emma watches with an aching heart while Killian walks up and places his hook on the small of her back. 

“Is there nothing we can do, mate?”

Oliver places a soft kiss on Felicity’s forehead and briefly closes his eyes.

“Even if we let him go, he might just out me anyway.”

Emma begins to shiver as the adrenaline leaves her body, and she puts her hands in her coat pockets to keep them from shaking. She frowns as she feels her fingers brush against something and when she pulls it out, her eyes go wide.

She lifts her head as Killian speaks. “Is that…”

“Do you think it’ll work?” she asks in a whisper.

“I don’t know, love,” he answers with a shrug. “It’s a potion, not magic… it might.” 

She turns over the vial Regina gave her in her hand.

“The memory potion you gave me last year worked.”

“Aye, it did.”

After a moment, she makes a decision.

“Guys, I might have a solution.”

Emma explains to them what’s in the vial and how it works. They seem hesitant, but with no other option, they agree. She tells Oliver to put his mask on and his hood up as Killian and her move toward a still unconscious Cooper. They kneel down and Killian pulls him up to settle him against the tire of the van. Clenching her jaw, she smacks Cooper across the face.

“Wake up.”

It takes two more slaps and Killian jarring him for Cooper to awake, and when he does his face goes hard.

“You bitch.”

Killian pulls Cooper’s head back by his hair, making him yell out.

“You’re going to drink this,” Emma tells him as she holds the vial up.

Cooper snarls, pressing his lips together and shakes his head. Killian and her exchange a glance and she nods. He takes his hook, holds it under Cooper’s chin, and uses his right hand to force Cooper’s mouth open. He tries to struggle, but in his weakened state he doesn’t put up much of a fight. She takes the top off the vial and pours the potion down Cooper’s throat. When she’s done, Killian uses his hand to close Cooper’s mouth before he can try to spit it out, and Emma waits until she sees Cooper’s throat move to indicate that he’s swallowed. Killian lets go of his face and they both sit back and wait. Within seconds, Cooper’s eyes roll back and he lets out a deep breath. When his eyes open again, they are glassy and full of confusion, and when his gaze lands on Emma his brow furrows.

“Who are you?” He begins to struggle only to stop and cry out due to his injuries. “What did you do to me? Whoever you are, you’ll pay!”

Emma concentrates on his face to see if he’s lying and Cooper looks over her shoulder. Suddenly, his eyes go wide and fear flashes across his features. She looks behind her to see Oliver standing there in full Green Arrow attire. 

Cooper whimpers. “What are you going to do to me?”

“Oi!” Killian snaps his fingers in front of Cooper’s face and points. “Do you know who that is?”

An eternity seems to pass before Cooper finally shakes his head. “No.”


	10. Chapter 10

Emma rolls over onto her back and lets out a sigh. The clock on the bedside table reads just after three in the morning, and so far, she’s gotten zero sleep. She looks over at Killian—who is sound asleep—and studies his face. He looks so much younger and carefree, and if it was her first time seeing him, she would never guess that he’s a pirate, a couple hundred years old, and that he struggles with the darkness inside him on a daily basis. 

Pressing her lips together, she runs her fingers over the hand around her waist.

Killian believes he’s a bad man. He thinks he’s not worthy enough to be called a hero, and that she’s the one that saves him every day. But the truth is, _he_ was the one that saved _her_ earlier today. If he hadn’t snapped out of it when he did and stopped her, she might have gone as far as killing Cooper. A shiver runs down her spine, and she decides to get up. 

Emma carefully lifts Killian’s arm off her midsection and gently slides out of the bed. She picks up his shirt and throws it over her shoulders, buttoning it while she pads over to the large window in the common area. The world outside is quiet tonight, with barely any movement. It seems peaceful, but she knows if she looked hard enough, she’d be able to see the darkness that hides underneath. 

Just like the darkness within her. Just like the darkness that Killian fights every day, that he almost gave into earlier because of her. Because she couldn’t control her anger. Because she _wanted_ to hurt Cooper and didn’t care about the consequences. She’s supposed to be the savior, and _he_ was the one that stopped them, _he_ was the one that said it was too much, but that isn’t the worst part.

The worst part is that even after _all_ of it, she can’t find it in herself to feel guilty about her actions, because she still carries so much anger over what Cooper did to her and her friends, and she doesn’t know how to let go of that. Not yet.

And she has no idea what that means, and her mind won’t stop spinning long enough for her to try and figure it out.

Emma jumps slightly when two arms encircle her waist, but her entire body relaxes when Killian presses his lips to the back of her head.

“Sorry if I woke you.”

She feels him shake his head before he pulls her back against him.

“What’s on your mind, love?”

Leaning back against his shoulder, she watches the lights twinkle in the distance and mumbles, “That’s a difficult question to answer.”

He gives a low hum and moves his lips to her ear. “Must be if it takes you away from a bed that has a dashing pirate in it,” he jokes, and she smiles for the first time that night. “Talk to me, Emma.”

She turns in his arms and her hands move to his bare chest— _Thump, thump. Thump, thump. —_ and her pinky brushes over that tattoo he had inked on his chest for her. 

“I could have killed him… I _wanted_ to kill him.”

“But you didn’t.”

She snorts and looks up at him. “No, I just broke his wrist and we both beat him until he fell unconscious. I’m supposed to be helping you fight the darkness, not give into it.”

Killian’s brow furrows. “You do help me.”

“Not tonight.” He tilts his head, and she continues. “I was right there with you, inflicting pain on a man that could barely fight back. That isn’t helping, Killian. I’m supposed to be the savior, but how can I do that when all I wanted tonight was to see him suffer? How can I help you overcome the darkness when I can’t even help myself?” Killian shakes his head and opens his mouth, but she cuts him off. “I should feel guilty for what we did to him. A hero is _supposed_ to feel guilty… but I don’t. Even now, what does that say? I’ve felt guilty about Cora, about Pan, even about Gold and they’ve _killed_ people! But I don’t feel guilty over someone who hacked some computers?”

“Emma,” He starts softly, his right hand moving to cup her face. “It says that you’re human, that you have real feelings and real emotions.” She tries to speak, but he stops her. “This was a man from your past that hurt you, that hurt people you care about, and you haven’t dealt with those feelings in years. So, of course when you first saw him, you felt nothing but anger… that’s _normal_. And the reason you’ve felt guilty about the others and not him is because you’ve seen parts of them that were once good. You’ve never seen that with Cooper. We both know that being a hero isn’t black and white. If it was, Regina would still be trying to kill your mother and I would have continued on my quest for vengeance against the crocodile. But we aren’t, because you saw the good in us, and believed in us. I know what it feels like to harbor hatred for someone for years, and the moment you see that person, it all comes out. Things aren’t so simple, Emma. We act on our emotions and sometimes they aren’t always the best choices, but we deal with it and move on.”

Tears prick her eyes, and she thinks she’s never loved him more than in that moment.

“You aren’t the savior because you _always_ choose good, you’re the savior because you see both sides of everything and make the hard decisions when others can’t, and because you understand what it feels like to hate and to be lonely. It’s okay to not feel guilty, Emma. That doesn’t make you a bad person, it makes you _human_.”

A small puff of air passes her lips, and a single tear runs down her cheek. She wants to tell him how much his words mean to her, how they’ve made her feel… but she’s never been good with words. “How did you become so smart?”

He smirks. “Years and years of practice.” She smiles and he swipes her tear away with the pad of his thumb. “Not giving into the darkness is a struggle, aye, but not as much as before. I didn’t have anything to live for back then. But now I have you… and you are what keeps me on my path. We may overindulge—we are alike in that way—but we have each other to keep us grounded. Tonight, it was me helping you, next time, it’ll be you helping me.”

She smiles and moves forward to kiss him. 

“Thank you,” she whispers against his lips. 

His eyes move back and forth between hers. “I love you, Emma.”

“I love you, too.”

Killian smiles before he presses a sweet kiss against her forehead and steps back. “Will you come back to bed, then? It appears I’ve developed a nasty habit of being unable to sleep when you’re not there.”

“Is that a habit we should try and break?” she asks as she follows him back to the bedroom.

He pulls her hand up to his mouth to place a light kiss there, and smirks. “Never.”

* * *

When Emma walks out of the bedroom the next morning, she’s greeted with an entire spread of bagels, fruit, muffins, and different types of cream cheeses. 

“What’s all this?”

Killian smiles before wrapping his arms around her waist and pressing a kiss to her temple.

“Breakfast. I ran down to that little shop we spotted the other day and picked up almost everything the old man had for sale. It all smelled positively mouthwatering.” 

Walking over to the table, she pops a grape into her mouth and nods.

“It really does—is that chocolate sauce?!”

“I’m told chocolate cures most ailments for women… and that chocolate-dipped fruit is rather delicious.” He slides his stump across her lower back. “How are you feeling?”

Not wanting to talk about the night before, she turns and puts her hand on the back of his neck before pushing up onto her toes to kiss him as distraction.

“Hm, I love you.”

He smiles against her lips, then pulls away with a raised eyebrow. “Nice try.”

They sit down to eat, and after a while, Emma has her legs draped over his lap and is happily kissing away remnants of cream cheese left on his lips. He’s playfully nipping at her fingers when his cell phone dings. She removes her legs from his lap and takes a sip of her coffee while he types something back in his phone before placing it back down and turning toward her.

“So, I have news.” She looks up at Killian to find him scratching the back of his ear before he continues. “I… uh, I spoke to Granny this morning.” Her brow furrows and he blows out a breath. “I told her that once we return, I’ll be moving out of her establishment.”

For a quick second, she panics— _is he leaving???_ —but then the rational part of her brain breaks through. _Everything is going to be okay._

Swallowing her bite of her bagel, she says, “Oh?”

“I found an apartment—I believe that’s what the lad called it—that has a lovely view of the water. It’s ready for me to move into when we get back.”

Emma’s mouth drops.

“You got an apartment.”

“I did,” he chuckles softly. “Your lad was gracious enough to aid me in my quest, and it took no time at all.”

“You got an apartment?”

“Aye!” he answers excitedly, before picking up his cell phone and turning it toward her. “It’s close to your parents, and the station—”

Her eyes go wide and she holds her breath as he swipes through different pictures. He’s going to ask her to move in with him, she just knows it. That’s why he’s gotten an apartment, and he’s been so sweet to make sure that it’s close to everything so it’s easy for her and—

“And there’s a second bedroom, you know, for Henry, because I’m hoping…” He trails off with a smile and her heart begins to race. 

It’s too fast, right? They can’t move in together alr—

“That perhaps the two of you would grant me the pleasure of having you as night guests a few times.”

She blinks once, then twice. He… _what?_

“What?”

His cheeks tint and he shrugs. “Well, I thought that on the nights we watch one of his moving pictures, and it gets late, the two of you can stay over instead of heading back to your parents, and then we can have breakfast in the morning.”

That’s… a great idea, and so lovely, and so… not what she expected. She should feel relieved. It’s too early… they can’t move in together… not yet… right?

“Swan?” His voice snaps Emma out of her thoughts and she looks up to see him frowning. “If you don’t wish to, I understand—”

“I do!” she breathes out, her hand moving to cover his. “I’m sorry, it’s just… you got an apartment!” She forces her voice to sound excited and ignores the disappointment she feels. “Killian, that’s so great.” Emma leans forward to wrap her arms around his shoulders for a hug. “Of course, Henry and I will spend the night.” 

“Are you sure, because you didn’t appear to be—”

She pulls back and places her hands on his face, giving him a kiss to cut him off.

“I’m happy. I’m sorry, I just…” She can’t tell him that she’s disappointed that he’s not asking her to move in with him, because if she’s being honest, she doesn’t know _why_. “I guess I’m still surprised that you’re here… that you’re staying and that you… you w-want me, that’s all.”

Killian’s expression softens as he brushes a piece of hair out of her face. “I’ve wanted you since the first moment I saw you, love. Trust me, there’s no getting rid of me.”

Climbing into his lap, she wraps her arms around him and kisses him after whispering, “Good, because I don’t want to.”

His right hand moves up her sleep shorts to grip her ass, while his stump digs into the small of her back as she grinds down into his lap, but just as he moves to help her remove her oversized t-shirt, they hear a knock at the door. They pull back from each other with equal looks of confusion.

“Oliver?” Killian asks, his voice huskier than normal.

“I’m sure he would have called.” Emma pushes herself up from Killian’s lap and straightens her shorts. “You wait here. Whoever it is, I’m sure they don’t want to see _that_.”

He smirks up at her as she motions to his lap. “They don’t… or you don’t want them to?”

“I don’t share.”

His laugh follows her to the hotel room door just as another knock echoes. Pulling it open, her eyes go wide when she sees the person standing on the other side.

“Robin?!”

Robin Hood stands in the hallway of the hotel, smiling like it’s not strange for him to be in Star City when he’s supposed to be an hour away with his family in New York.

“Hello, Emma.”

Recovering from her shock, she steps forward and greets him with a hug. “Oh my god, it’s good to see you!”

Robin returns the hug. “You too.”

“Robin?”

She turns to see Killian walking up while pulling his shirt on with his brows furrowed, and she moves out of the way to usher Robin inside, allowing the two men to greet each other while she closes the door. 

“I’m sorry to intrude like this—” 

Emma waves him off while Killian offers him some food. 

“No, thank you—but I called Henry and he told me that you and Hook were here, so I took a cab.”

She winces as she sits across from him. “Expensive ride.”

“Yeah,” Robin snorts. “And they call me a thief.”

“Is everything alright, mate?”

Robin sighs. “I’m here about the Dark One.”

Emma feels Killian go tense next to her, and she reaches under the table to place her hand on his knee before focusing back on Robin. “What about him?”

“He’s in New York… in the hospital. He asked me to acquire a potion from some kind of… furniture store.”

That makes Emma sit up. “What? Where? What was it called?”

“The Wizard of Oak.”

Her lips press together, and she feels Killian’s eyes on her.

“Swan?”

“That was Walsh’s store.” Killian’s jaw clenches and she shakes her head before asking Robin, “Do you know what he wanted it for?”

“No,” Robin answers with a sigh. “But I got it, and in exchange he promised to leave me and my family alone. Though, it has me worried, because with the Dark One…”

“There’s always an agenda,” Killian finishes with a little growl, and Emma shoots up.

“Give us five minutes. We’ll come with you back to New York.”

* * *

After Emma calls Oliver to let him know they are driving to New York, they head out, spending most of the ride catching Robin up on what he’s missed in Storybrooke, and he shares how things have been for him and his family. He asks about Regina only once but is quick to take it back before Emma or Killian can answer. It’s clear he misses her, and Emma’s heart aches at the thought of their forced separation.

It gets quieter as they get closer to the hospital, and by the time they pull into the parking garage, there’s absolute silence. The tension is thick, and when they enter the elevator Killian is practically vibrating. 

“He’s just down the hall,” Robin says as they step off, and she turns to Killian.

“You should stay here.”

His eyes widen incredulously. “Like bloody hell.”

“Gold is just a man here, Killian. There’s nothing he can do to me,” she reminds him, her palms placed lightly on his chest. “Plus, I don’t need you getting arrested.” He runs his hand through his hair, and she motions to the opposite end of the hall. “There’s a waiting room. I won’t be long.”

His clenched jaw relaxes slightly when she presses a kiss to his cheek and mumbles that she loves him before walking down the hall with Robin. When she finally enters the room, she sucks in a breath at the sight before her. Gold is lying on the bed with his eyes closed and wires hooked up to him. He looks weak, and fragile, and like… a man. He looks like a regular man. 

“Jesus,” she whispers, stepping further into the room.

Robin nods. “It’s a sight to take in, that’s for sure.”

Gold’s eyes begin to flicker before he finally opens them, and she takes a deep breath. At first, he only sees Robin and his stare turns cold, until he notices her, and it changes to shock, then anger.

“How are you here?!”

“Does it matter?”

Gold tries to sit up but winces and falls back down. “If you’re here, there’s a way back. Tell me! Take me!”

Emma shakes her head. “There’s no way back, Gold, you know that.”

“No,” Gold growls. “You wouldn’t be here if there wasn’t.” She stares at him blankly and after a moment, Gold sighs and lets his head drop back. “Of course, you’re the savior. The Snow Queen would have wanted you to come and go as you please.” Emma chooses not to correct him, and he lifts his head. “Come to gloat, Miss Swan?”

“What’s your plan, Gold?” she asks while folding her arms across her chest.

“My plan is to die.”

Her mouth falls open and Robin steps forward. 

“Die? What about the potion you had me get for you?”

“It wasn’t the potion; it was a decoy.” Gold chuckles dryly and motions to her. “It seems that Walsh used the last of it on Miss Swan.”

She blinks. “What?”

Gold smirks. “You sure do know how to pick them, dearie.”

Walking up to the bed, she hisses, “What did he use on me?”

“If you want to know that, then we’ll have to make a deal.”

“The time for making deals is over, Gold.” She turns away from him. “Come on, Robin, let’s go. He’s got nothing for us.”

Before they can leave, Gold calls out, “I have two secrets left to tell, and once includes your precious wife, Locksley.”

Robin storms over to the bed and Emma has to grab his arm to hold him back from grabbing Gold. 

“Relax, he’s obviously lying.”

Gold gives a sick laugh. “You’d like to think that, wouldn’t you?”

Robin’s eyes connect with hers. “Emma…” 

Taking a deep breath, she nods before turning back to Gold. “What do you want?”

* * *

As soon as Emma and Robin rush into the waiting room, Killian stops his pacing and reaches them in two steps. The moment his eyes fall on Emma’s face, his body goes tense and his gaze hardens.

“What did the bloody crocodile do this time?”

She clenches her jaw and takes a deep breath. She has to tell him, she knows she does, but now is not the time, and they have to get to Roland.

“I’ll explain everything, I promise, but right now, I need you to trust me and do exactly as I say.”

Killian’s eyes move back and forth between hers for half a second before he gives a tight nod, and the three of them rush out of the room. It’s not until the elevator doors close, that Killian finally asks, “Can I at least know where we’re going?”

Robin, who is practically bouncing on his feet, answers, “To my apartment to get my son. The Dark One says that Marian is not Marian, but Zelena.”

Killian’s head whips around at that. “The Wicked Witch?!”

Emma explains to him what Gold told them as they run to her car after the elevator stops, and by the time she’s pulling out of the garage, both men look downright murderous. 

“If she’s touched my son…” Robin growls, and Killian turns back to him.

“Don’t think like that, mate. The little lad is fine. She’s kept the ruse up for this long, and she wouldn’t risk it now for no good reason.” He glances at Emma. “We’re sure he was telling the truth, aye? The crocodile has been known to lie before.”

Switching lanes quickly, Emma nods, “He’s telling the truth.”

“How do you know?” Her eyes connect with Robin’s in the rearview mirror, and when neither of them answer, Killian curses. “You didn’t… Swan, please tell me you didn’t make a deal with the Dark One.”

The piece of paper in her pocket suddenly feels heavy and her hands tighten on the steering wheel. “I asked you to trust me,” she pleads in a whisper. 

She understands that when it comes to Gold, not having answers is a lot to ask of Killian, but there’s no time. They have something more important to deal with.

“I do trust you. It’s _him_ I don’t trust.”

“She did it for me,” Robin speaks up. “I’m sorry, Emma.”

“There’s nothing to be sorry about,” she insists as she parks outside of Neal’s old apartment. “Now, when we go inside, Killian, you grab Roland, while Robin and I confront her. If she’s smart, she won’t try anything, but just in case, I don’t want anything to happen until Roland’s out of there.”

Killian takes a deep breath. “How will you confront her?”

“Gold said she’s using a necklace with a glamour spell. If that’s true, when she takes it off, she’ll turn back into Zelena. If she refuses, I’ll make her take it off, and in a world without magic there really isn’t anything she can do about that.”

As they approach the apartment, Emma’s hand goes to the gun on her hip, and she gives Robin a nod to open the front door, where they find Marian—or whoever the hell she is—folding laundry. She turns as they enter, her expression quickly morphing into surprise when she sees that Robin is not alone.

“Emma… Killian… it’s good to see you,” Marian says with a forced smile.

Roland steps forward. “Where’s Roland?”

“He’s taking a nap,” she motions to the bedroom. Emma nods toward it, and Killian moves to the right, disappearing behind the wall as Marian asks, “What’s going on?”

No one says anything, and Killian walks back into the room with Roland in his arms, the boy’s sleeping head on his shoulder. Killian gives Emma a small nod before heading to the hall. Marian attempts to follow but is stopped when Robin stomps forward and reaches for the necklace.

When she blocks him, Emma knows that what Gold told them was true.

Robin tries again, and his hand is swatted away. “Give me the necklace!” he growls, the pain and betrayal clear in his voice.

“Robin, you’re acting crazy! What is going on here?!”

Robin appears to struggle internally with himself before his body sags. Robin is a good man, a man of honor, and he refuses to force her in case there’s the slightest chance that she’s actually his wife. With a clenched jaw, Emma pushes past Robin to grab the necklace. She yanks before Marian can react, and the other woman’s eyes widen as she morphs back into Zelena.

Pulling the gun from her hip, she holds it up and points it right at Zelena’s face.

“Robin, go pack what you need.” She doesn’t hear any movement and her eyes flicker over to see the man standing there with an expression of complete horror on his face, and she calls his name again until he looks at her. “Go pack.” He finally nods and goes to the other room, and Emma’s attention is brought back to Zelena, who begins to laugh. “You think this is funny?”

Still laughing, Zelena nods. “I really do, and it was all worth it. I can’t wait to see the look on my dear old sister’s face when she finds out the news.”

“You won’t.” Zelena tilts her head and Emma continues, “You’re not coming back to Storybrooke, Zelena. You’re staying here, in New York. Learn to live on your own, in a world without magic. Maybe it’ll teach you a thing or two.”

Zelena’s lips curl into a sneer. “The Dark One will—”

“Gold’s dead.” Emma cuts her off. “So, whatever help you think you’ll get is not coming.” Robin walks back into the room with a duffle bag and two other bags, and she nods over her shoulder, “Let’s go.”

“You can’t just leave me here!” Zelena shrieks.

Robin steps into her space. “You deserve everything you get! You’ll stay here and keep away from my family!” He backs up, and Emma finally puts her gun back in its holster.

“I’ll find a way back,” Zelena threatens, her hands clenching at her sides.

Emma chuckles dryly. “Good luck. Storybrooke isn’t on any maps.”

Just as they close the door, they hear Zelena yell in anger.


	11. Chapter 11

When they get back to the hotel room, Emma lets Robin take a still sleeping Roland into their bedroom and calls room service to request a cot. She then joins Killian at the bar and takes a deep breath. She’s not dumb enough to think he’ll be upset about Gold’s passing, but he’s also not going to just shrug it off, so, she needs to be as delicate as possible. 

“Killian, will you sit down with me for a minute?” His glass stops midway to his mouth and his brow raises while she continues. “We need to talk.”

“What’s wrong?” She motions to a chair, and there’s a pause before Killian eventually sits. Emma walks up to him, cupping his face and swiping her thumb over his scar as he mumbles, “Emma—”

“Gold’s dead.”

He goes stiff and she thinks he might have even stopped breathing for a second. He doesn’t move, doesn’t say a word, and it’s not until she brushes her thumb over the swell of his cheek that he finally reacts. He stands and she has to step back so she doesn’t get knocked over.

“Killian?”

“Dead? Are you sure?”

The flash of Gold’s body going limp flashes through her mind and she nods. “I watched it happen.”

Killian’s eyes snap up to her. “How?”

She clears her throat. “Uh, the doctor says heart failure.”

He sucks in a breath and she watches as his jaw clenches. After another moment passes and he doesn’t speak, and Emma’s brows furrow. She’s not sure exactly what she expected when she told him about Gold, but to have him not say _anything_ , especially when he’s always so adamant about her expressing herself… that’s very unexpected.

“Are you okay?” He opens his mouth, but nothing comes out. She waits and when he still doesn’t respond, she asks, “Do you want to talk about it?”

He seems to think on his answer before he finally shakes his head, and she frowns. It’s the first time since they’ve met that she’s unable to read his emotions and it’s making her uneasy. 

“Killian—”

“Emma!” 

She’s cut off by the sound of a small voice calling her name and she turns just in time to see Roland, fully awake, running from the bedroom, arms wide and with a large smile on his face. Emma kneels down just in time for the young boy to launch himself into her arms. When she pulls back, he calls out for Killian and repeats the process and Emma smiles tightly as her boyfriend lightly pats the boy on the shoulders in response to the hug. Robin follows after his son, his eyes moving between Emma and Killian before he raises his brow in question, and she shakes her head.

“Let me order lunch for you guys.”

Killian is quiet the entire time they eat, only speaking when Roland asks him a question and Emma starts doubting herself. Maybe she shouldn’t have told him… maybe she should have just kept it to herself. But they’re supposed to be honest with each other and he deserves to know. Damn, she really wishes they were alone.

It’s just after the food gets there and they all sit that Roland asks, “Papa, where’s Mama?”

Emma, Killian, and Robin all freeze and look at each other. As far as the little boy knows, his mother _was_ his mother and not the Wicked Witch. When Robin doesn’t say anything, Emma clears her throat and shifts in her chair. 

“You and your papa are going to go on a little vacation and your mama had to stay back at home, Roland.”

The little boy accepts the answer with a small smile and a nod before he turns back to his food. There’s a dense silence as they eat. Well, as she and Roland eat. Robin just pushes his food around while Killian stares blankly at the table, and she senses that there’s going to be a reaction from one—or both—of them if she doesn’t do something soon. 

She’s just not sure what she should do.

As Robin pushes his food around for the third time and Killian finally takes his first bite, Roland asks, “Papa, did you bring any of my toys for the vacation?”

Robin’s eyes close, his shoulders sagging before he looks to his son and slowly shakes his head. “Uh, no, son. I’m sorry, I’ve forgotten your toys.” 

Roland’s face falls and he looks back to his food as an idea pops into Emma’s head. She stands up from the table, and mumbles she’ll be right back before she pulls her phone from her pocket and rushes into the bedroom.

“Hey Felicity…”

* * *

Emma’s flipping through channels while Roland tries unsuccessfully to play with Robin and Killian when there’s a knock at the door. The men both jump up at the same time and Emma rolls her eyes as she walks over to open the door, letting Oliver, Felicity and Mia inside.

“Aunt Emma!” 

She waves to the little girl before leaning down and resting her hands on her knees. “Mia, I’d like to introduce you to someone, is that okay?”

Mia thinks on it for a moment before she nods and takes Emma’s hand, only to let it go a second later when she catches sight of her Uncle Killian. The cold demeanor slips just a portion as she wraps her arms around his neck, and Emma calls out to the little girl and nods over her shoulder. Roland is on the floor, kneeling at his father’s feet while looking at them expectantly. 

“Mia, this is Robin—” He gives her a smile and a little wave. “—and this is Robin’s son, Roland.” Mia hides a little behind Emma’s leg and smiles shyly. “Roland and his daddy are going to be staying with me and Uncle Killian tonight and I thought you guys could play together.”

Roland’s eyes go wide. “Do you have toys?”

Mia looks up at Emma, who nods, before she steps around Emma’s leg with a nod of her own.

“Mommy and Daddy let me bring some. I have Barbies, pirate ships, and swords, because I’m a princess!”

“Papa, can I play?” Roland’s practically bouncing, and Robin chuckles.

“Of course, son.”

Mia instantly turns to grab the bag Oliver is holding, before her and Roland rush to the other side of the room. Emma turns back to her friends and motions between them.

“Robin, these are my friends, Oliver and his wife Felicity.”

They shake hands and Oliver raises his brow. “Robin… _Hood_?”

Robin smiles. “Uh, Locksley, but yes, I’ve been called Robin Hood from time to time.”

Oliver’s eyes go wide and Felicity giggles. “Aw, I think Oliver is having a fangirl moment.”

His cheeks tint while Robin and Killian exchange a look of confusion. 

“Robin Hood was one of my favorite stories as a kid,” he mumbles.

“Ah!” Robin nods with a small smile. “Well, I appreciate that.”

“Tell the truth, babe,” Felicity starts in a teasing tone. “Is that the reason you favored the arrow?”

Oliver rolls his eyes despite the smile on his face, and Emma nods to him as she speaks to Robin. “Have you heard any of the news reports about the Green Arrow here in Star City?”

Robin nods. “It’s a good thing what that man does. It makes me yearn for days of the past, if I’m completely honest.”

“Well,” Emma starts and points to Oliver. “Robin Hood, meet the Green Arrow.”

Robin’s mouth falls open and Felicity, Killian, and Emma all chuckle.

“Truly?” Oliver scratches the back of his neck and nods before Robin steps forward and sticks his hand out for another handshake. “It’s an honor. You do fantastic work out there.”

Emma bites her lip as Oliver blushes more, then clears his throat and asks, “I heard you guys could use a drink?”

Killian arches a brow, his eyes moving to Emma as Robin presses his lips together.

“As much as I do, I’m afraid Roland—”

“Don’t worry about Roland,” Emma cuts in. “Felicity and I will stay with the kids.”

“Emma, you’ve already done so much, I couldn’t possibly…”

Emma shakes her head and stops him. “I’m insisting. Besides, you know Regina is going to freak out about this whole Zelena thing when we get back, so it’s best if you’ve already had your time to process what’s happened.” She turns to Killian and continues, “You, too.”

Killian opens his mouth in what she assumes to be a protest, but no words come. Instead, he clasps his mouth shut and clenches his jaw, and Emma knows he’s not going to argue.

_Good._

* * *

“My daddy is a king,” Mia tells Roland as she hands him a pirate ship.

“My papa is a thief, but he only steals from bad men,” Roland explains.

“Is your papa Robin Hood?”

Roland smiles. “Yes!”

Mia nods, her lips pressed together knowingly, “I thought so.”

Emma and Felicity chuckle from their spot on the couch and shake their heads. 

“Robin’s son is so adorable,” Felicity muses. “Mia is having such a great time.”

Emma smiles. “Thanks again for this. I know we were supposed to have dinner to celebrate, but then Robin showed up and things just... “

Felicity waves her hand. “It’s fine. It gets Oliver out of my hair. He’s been watching me like a hawk. I can barely go to the bathroom without him following me! You don’t even _want_ to know what I had to promise to get him to agree to go out.” Emma snorts and Felicity shrugs after taking a sip of her wine. “But this will be good for him, too. Maybe with some guy time, he’ll be able to relax.”

“Hopefully they all will,” Emma agrees. “How are you doing, by the way?”

Felicity sighs and brings her legs up onto the couch. “I’m good. I mean, I was kidnapped by my psycho ex, but I’m good. I was more scared for all of you. I knew he wouldn’t hurt me because he needed my help, but I also knew Oliver wouldn’t believe that.”

“Yeah, he was ready to go in guns blazing, and Killian was backing him, which is even more scary. I had to talk both of them down to come up with a plan.”

Felicity takes a sip of her wine again and rolls her eyes. “Of course he was.”

“What’s going to happen to Cooper now?”

“Oh, he has a list of felonies he’s looking at,” Felicity explains. “Lance is throwing everything at him. Plus, he doesn’t remember anything so I doubt there will even be a trial. You guys won’t have to worry about coming back for statements or anything. As far as the DA is concerned, he was apprehended by the Green Arrow alone.”

“We’ll come back to visit, or you guys can come to Storybrooke, but I swear, we’ll keep in touch this time.”

Felicity holds up her hand and sticks her pinky out. “Pinky promise?”

Emma tilts her head and Felicity raises her brows. After a couple seconds pass, Emma rolls her eyes and lifts her hand to lock her pinky finger with her friend’s.

“Pinky promise.”

“Good. Plus, there’s another reason we have to stay in touch.” Emma looks to her in question and Felicity smirks. “Could you imagine breaking up Killian and Oliver’s bromance?”

“Oh, god, I know!” Emma gasps, her legs curling under her. “What is with that? You’d think _they_ were the ones that have known each other for years.”

“Killian is a good guy, and from the moment we met him, we could tell how happy he made you. And it’s so easy to see how he feels about you. He’d jump in front of a bus for you, and Oliver, as you well know, has that same hero mentality, so it helps they’re so alike.”

Emma’s nose scrunches. “Please don’t tell me my boyfriend is like Ollie.”

Felicity giggles for a quick moment before she becomes serious and reaches forward to place her hand over Emma’s. “You’re so different than you were the last time I saw you, you’re so… happy. And that makes _me_ happy.”

Tears prick Emma’s eyes, and she turns her hand to squeeze her friend’s, but before they can say anything else, they are interrupted by Roland and Mia.

“Mommy, Roland and I are hungry.”

“Yeah?” The kids nod at the same time and Felicity asks, “Well, what do you think we should have for dinner?”

“Pizza!” They both yell at the same time and Emma and Felicity laugh, watching them jump up and down.

“Guess we’re ordering pizza.”

* * *

It’s just before three in the morning, the kids both asleep on the cot, while Felicity is in the bathroom, when the door to the hotel room opens and three very grown, _very_ drunk men stumble inside, laughing hysterically.

“Oh my god.” Emma walks forward and they all look up at her, their smiles growing wider before they all speak at the same time.

“Hey, good looking!”

“Sheriff!”

“My love!”

Her eyes widen as she steps forward and asks, “Did you guys have a good time?”

Oliver stumbles over to her and places his hands on her arms. “The best… Em, sweetheart, where is my beautiful wife?”

“Right here, drunkie,” Felicity says softly as she walks back into the room, making Oliver’s face light up before he rushes over to her. “Shh, you’ll wake up the kids!”

Emma opens her mouth to agree but is cut off as she’s almost tackled by Killian.

“Mmm,” he mumbles into her hair. “I’ve missed you, Princess.”

His arms wrap around her tightly—so tightly that he even cracks her back a little, and she chuckles. “I can see that.”

She tries to pull away, but Killian buries his head into her neck and her arms fall down as much as they can over his biceps. 

“How’s Roland?” Robin asks.

“Uh,” she tries to do a little wiggle but Killian holds on even tighter and she sighs. “He’s fine. He and Mia played knights and princesses all night. They’re over there, sleeping on the cot.”

Killian begins to rock them and back forth and Emma’s head falls back while the others begin to softly laugh. 

“Which means you all have to be quiet or else you’ll wake them up,” Felicity whispers while she places her hand over her husband’s mouth.

Oliver nods, his eyes sparkling, before Felicity turns, giving Emma a shake of her head and then walking over to where her daughter is sleeping. Trying to free herself again, Emma steps back, but Killian follows her, and she bites her lip after chuckling. She looks to a very amused Robin and gestures to her pirate—just as he starts to lightly suck on her neck—and silently asks for help.

Robin pushes himself off the bar with a laugh and pats Killian on the back. The small gesture seems to snap Killian out of it, and he lets her go so he can turn to the thief. Emma straightens her shirt and watches the two men as they _attempt_ to converse, but she’s sure it’s mostly nonsense.

“She’s so precious, I love her so much, Felicity.”

Emma looks to her left to see Felicity approaching with a sleeping Mia in her arms, while Oliver stares at the little girl and hunches close to her.

“Yes, I know, babe, but _please_ be quiet so that she doesn’t wake up.”

Oliver puts his finger to his lips and nods. “Shhh.”

Robin and Killian do the same and the two females exchange an amused look before Felicity leans in to give Emma a kiss on the cheek.

“Call me tomorrow when you wake up, and we’ll come say goodbye.”

Emma nods before she’s once again almost tackled, this time by Oliver.

_These boys are going to kill me._

“Em! My Emmaaa! I can’t believe you’re leaving!”

Emma pats his back and chuckles. “Yes, tomorrow.”

He pulls back, and it takes a second for his glassy eyes to lock onto hers. “I’m coming to see you, you’re not leaving without saying goodbye.” She tells him okay and chuckles softly as he places a wet kiss on her forehead. As she wipes the wetness away, Oliver turns from her and holds his arms out. “Men!”

The three of them come together for a hilarious group hug, each patting the others back as they praise each other a little too loudly. 

“Shh!” Felicity hisses, but it’s too late.

Mia lifts her head and rubs her eyes. “Mommy?”

Felicity huffs in frustration as she rubs her daughter’s back. “It’s okay, baby. We’re going home, go back to sleep.”

Mia glances around as another round of chuckles erupts, and her eyes brighten just a little. “Daddy?”

Oliver looks over his shoulder, his eyes widening when they land on his daughter. “There’s my little princess! Daddy missed you!” 

He stumbles over to his wife and daughter and rubs his nose against Mia’s cheek as Robin pats Emma on the shoulder before moving toward the couch. She goes to help him, but Killian wraps his arms around her once again and she’s stuck as he snuggles into her neck.

“You better hope she falls back asleep in the car, Queen,” Felicity hisses while Mia giggles at Oliver’s tickles.

“If she doesn’t, I’ll stay up with her, babe.”

Felicity snorts. “Yeah, sure you will. Em, I’ll see you tomorrow.” Emma tries to turn to her, but Killian’s arms once again tighten on her and she motions to him with a shrug, making Felicity chuckle, “Good luck!”

The door clicks behind her friends and Emma gives a sigh. “Uh, babe?” 

“Mm?”

“You’re going to have to let me go so we can go to bed.” A few seconds pass before Killian allows Emma to peel herself away, though he pouts the entire time. “Come on, Captain.”

Killian follows behind her… _close_ behind her. So close, that she almost stumbles as he tries to pull her back to him, and he pushes his nose into her hair. 

“Mm, my Swan…” he slurs, and she reaches back to pat the side of his head.

“Yes, hun, but now it’s time for bed.” When she turns to him, she sees his face light up and she shakes her head. “Oh no, don’t even think about it. We have company and you aren’t quiet when you’re _sober_. I don’t want to learn tonight how loud you are when you’re drunk.” He huffs and she pushes him down onto the bed with a plop. “Wow, I haven’t seen you this drunk since the Enchanted Forest.”

His face goes hard, and she arches her brow in response. “That wasn’t _me_ … and that bastard got to kiss you.” 

Wrestling him out of his jacket, she snorts, “That bastard _was_ you. And just think, when you dared me to kiss you in Neverland, it wasn’t even the first time!”

Killian’s nose scrunches. “It only counts when you remember it, love.”

Emma places her hands on her hips and nods. “Ah, because you would have gone after me if you had remembered, right?”

She goes to pull back the covers, but he stops her, a serious look in his glassy eyes. “I would have… I would have searched every realm looking for you.”

Biting her lip to keep herself from getting emotional, she steps forward and places a soft kiss on his forehead. “I know, baby. I know.”

* * *

As Emma wakes and stretches the next morning, she hears Killian mumble, “Robin told me what happened.” She turns on her side to find him looking at her. There’s a bit of smudged kohl under his eyes and his hair is flat from where he laid on it, but other than that, he looks perfectly normal. “That’s all he wanted… for you to deliver a note to Belle?” She nods, a lump in her throat keeping her from speaking. “And the monkey used a potion on you?”

She remembers how Gold explained to her that in order for Walsh to influence and get close to her, Zelena had given him a potion to make it easier.

“Yes.”

He asks her if she knows what for, and when she tells him she doesn’t, Killian pulls her into his arms and presses a light kiss on her forehead. “You’ll figure it out, love.”

Snuggling close to him, she waits a moment before asking, “How was last night?”

“Exactly what I needed,” he whispers into her hair. “That’s an incredible friend you have there, Swan.”

She looks up at him and smiles. “Your friend now, too.”

He kisses her softly, and they quietly make love as the room slowly fills with sunlight.

* * *

Emma and Killian allow Robin to sleep a little longer while they feed Roland breakfast and pack. They had planned on leaving a little earlier—she can hardly wait to see Henry—but with their plans being changed, it was better to have a couple of hours to come up with how they are going to break the news to everyone about what happened. 

Emma checks them out of the hotel, rolling her eyes when the front desk tells her that their room has been paid for by Mr. Queen, and walks out to the parking lot, where she finds Robin and Killian talking to Felicity and Oliver. Oliver’s wearing a pair of sunglasses and has a bottle of water in his hand, and she snickers a bit at his hungover state.

Felicity walks up and pulls her into a tight hug. “Please don’t let this be like the last time, Em. We couldn’t bear it,” she whispers.

Emma shakes her head and answers, “It won’t be. I promise.”

They pull back and Felicity gives her a tear-filled smile. “Thank you _so_ much… for _everything_.”

“Anytime.”

Emma turns in time to see Killian on his knee, pulling away from his hug with Mia, and she bites her lip.

“Your Aunt Emma and I will come visit again, little princess. Make sure you practice your sword skills with your dad.”

Mia nods with a smile, and Emma’s heart melts as the little girl rushes to her while Felicity moves to Killian.

“Bye Aunt Emma!”

Patting her head as she hugs her legs, Emma says, “Bye, sweetheart. Be good for your mommy and daddy, okay?”

“I promise!”

Felicity walks back over to pick up her daughter, giving Emma once last smile before she moves to her own car. Watching them, Emma leans back against the back of her bug and feels someone come to stand next to her.

“That’s a beautiful family you have there, Ollie.”

She can hear the smile in his voice when he responds. “Yes, they are.”

When she looks over, she sees Oliver remove his sunglasses before he asks, “Can you imagine what we would have said if someone had told us this was going to be our lives ten years ago?” Emma snorts and he continues, “Me, married with a daughter You, with a boyfriend and your son.”

She moves her gaze to the front of the car to where Killian is talking to Robin, and her stomach flutters when Killian smiles at her. 

“We probably would have had them arrested for insanity or something,” she jokes as she turns back to Oliver.

He chuckles, his eyes lingering on his family before his attention shifts to her. “Thank you, Emma. I couldn’t have done this without you.”

Feeling her throat tighten, she whispers, “Thank you for calling me.”

There’s a pause, before he says, “Don’t disappear again.”

When she looks into his eyes, they’re a bit glassy, and she shakes her head. “I won’t. You guys are probably going to get sick of me with how much I’m going to stay in touch.”

Oliver snorts. “Probably.”

Emma gasps in mock offense and lightly punches him in the bicep. After a moment, they turn to each other and Emma raises her brow, making Oliver roll his eyes and pull her to him. She wraps her arms around his shoulders, and he squeezes her around the waist and lifts her. When they finally pull apart, she sniffles and wipes away a stray tear.

“Text us when you get home to let us know you arrived safe.”

She nods with a smile. “We will.”

Oliver leans in and gives her a kiss on the forehead. When he pulls back, he quickly puts on his sunglasses, but Emma catches the wetness under his eyes before he starts to walk back to his car.

“Hey!” Oliver turns around, and Emma smirks. “Be safe out there, Ollie.”

“I always am, sweetheart!”

They give each other a wave and he gets in the car. At that moment, Emma promises herself that she’ll never disappear on them again; she’ll remember her friends and do her best to keep in touch. Killian approaches from behind, and she leans back against his chest, while their friends drive away with a friendly beep.

“Come on, love.” Killian kisses the back of her head. “Let’s go home.”


	12. Chapter 12

Emma parks in front of Granny’s diner and an uncontrollable smile spreads across her lips. 

“Happy to be home, love?”

Home… she’s _home_ and her family is just inside. Before she can answer, Roland’s voice rings out from the back seat. 

“Are we visiting Regina?!”

Killian and Emma exchange a look, and she struggles to find the right words.

“That we are, lad,” Killian answers with a smile, making her turn to him and he shrugs. “There’s no point in lying to the boy, Swan.”

“Right, well, give me five minutes before you wake him up,” Emma says as she nods to a sleeping Robin. “That way it gives me time to explain what happened.”

He gives her a smile and she leans in to press a soft kiss to his lips. When she walks through the door at Granny’s, the bell rings above her head and her eyes scan the room. It takes half a second to find exactly what she’s looking for at the back of the diner. 

“Mom!”

Henry shoots up from where he’s sitting with Regina, David, Mary Margaret, and baby Neal, and rushes forward, barreling into her stomach before she can take a breath. Smiling so hard it hurts, Emma squeezes her son close to her and breathes in him.

“Hey, kid. Man, did I miss you.”

Henry pulls back to smile up at her, and she cups his face. Sometimes it still shocks her how much he’s starting to look like Neal, because it means he’s growing up, and a tiny bit of her feels guilty for going away to Star City. Was it too long? Did she miss even more than she already has? 

“I missed you, too,” Henry beams before he looks behind her. “Where’s Hook?”

Pushing a piece of hair away from his forehead, she says, “He’s outside. He’ll be in in a minute.”

Henry hugs her again and she looks up to see the rest of their family standing behind him. Tears begin to form in the back of her eyes, and when her son lets go of her, she steps forward with her arms wide.

“Mom… Dad.”

Her parents’ smiles are as beautiful as she remembers, and she holds them close. Emma’s eyes close as David cradle’s the back of her head and Mary Margaret presses a soft kiss to her cheek.

“I missed you guys.”

“We missed you, too,” David whispers into her hair, and she lets out a long breath.

When she pulls back, she finally gets a good look at her little brother sleeping in her mother’s arms. Emma leans down to press a soft kiss to his forehead and whispers hello to him before she stands up straight. Prompted by movement in the corner of her eye, she looks to see Regina standing back, allowing them to have their family moment. 

“Miss Swan,” she greets with tight lips and a small nod.

Emma gives her parents a smile before moving towards her. “Regina, we need to talk.”

She raises her brow, and Emma takes a deep breath, only to be cut off by the sound of the bell ringing above the door again.

“Regina!”

They all look toward the entrance just in time to see Roland rushing forward. Quickly, Emma glances back toward Regina and… words can’t describe the look on the former queen’s face. Her mouth has dropped open and her eyes are wide as the little boy runs through the diner and straight to her. Regina drops to her knees just in time for Roland to launch himself into her arms.

A second later, the bell rings again to signal Killian’s entrance behind Robin’s frantic call for his son, while Regina’s face changes from shock to pure happiness.

“Robin?!” she cries out, while standing as Roland rushes over to hug Henry.

Robin stops in the doorway of the diner and stares at Regina like she’s the most beautiful creature on earth, before he takes slow, tentative steps toward her. Tears shine bright in both of their eyes, and the entire diner freezes as Robin finally approaches her. Regina opens her mouth but stops when he shakes his head and cups her face.

“I missed you.”

They kiss, and Emma turns away to give them privacy as she sees her mother wipe away a lone tear. She smiles when Henry embraces Killian and walks over to her boys while Roland returns to his father and Regina.

“I’m so happy we get to visit you, Regina!” Roland bounces with a big smile.

Regina pulls back from Robin with her eyes wide and her face fallen. She looks to Emma, who sighs.

“We need to talk.”

* * *

Regina grips the back of the chair she’s standing in front of and clenches her jaw. “You just _left_ her there?”

Emma presses her lips together. “What else did you want us to do?”

With a dark chuckle, Regina folds her arms across her chest and mumbles, “I know what I would have done.”

“Regina!” Mary Margaret gasps.

The former queen answers with a silent shrug and Henry looks up at them from his spot on the couch with Roland. Emma gives him a smile to let him know everything is okay and he gives her one of his own before continuing to read aloud from his storybook.

Emma made the decision for everyone to talk at her parents’ loft for two reasons. One, they didn’t want everyone in the diner to overhear them, and two, they weren’t sure how Regina would react. The less people around to be blasted by a fireball, the better.

“That’s hardly the most important point here,” Robin interjects, motioning to the living room. “My son. Roland’s not going to understand where his mother’s gone… for him to lose her again…”

“A forgetting potion,” Regina cuts in as she places her hand on his arm. “Just to take him back to before the fake Marian showed up… he’ll lose time, but it’s better than telling the truth, right?”

Robin gives a long sigh before nodding. “Yes, thank you.”

Regina’s lips twitch into a smile and she looks back to Emma. “Do you still have the potion I gave you?”

Wincing, Emma mumbles, “Uh, no.” Her brow arches and Emma sighs. “We had to use it in New York. It’s a long story, but it’s gone.”

“Fine, I’ll make one tomorrow,” Regina tells Robin. “Now, what are we going to do about my pain-in-the-ass sister?”

“Well, right now she’s stuck in New York with no way to get here, so that’s something,” Snow says hopefully.

“Until she meets up with Gold!” Regina hisses. “Do you really think the Dark One isn’t trying to figure out a way to get back here?”

Killian and Emma exchange a look, and it’s not until she feels his hand slide onto her knee that she takes a deep breath and says, “Gold is dead.”

Everyone grows still and quiet, the only sound in the loft coming from Henry reading to Roland in the living room.

“No, he isn’t,” Regina chuckles after a moment.

“He is,” Robin whispered. “Emma and I watched it happen.”

A shiver runs down Emma’s spine as the memories of Gold’s death flash through her mind. The way his eyes rolled back into his head as the monitors beeped right before the nurses and doctors rushed in—the way his arm went limp as they grabbed the crash cart and attempted to restart his heart. She remembers how his body jolted every time they shocked him and how his muscles twitched, but after the fourth shock, they stopped and called time of death.

“The doctors said it was heart failure,” Emma explains. “I don’t know if that’s really what happened… but that’s what they said.”

David lets out a breath and runs his hand through his hair as Mary Margaret whispers, “We have to tell Belle.”

Killian clears his throat and sits up straighter. “I’d like to be the one that tells her.” Everyone looks to him and he rubs the corners of his mouth. “We’ve become quite close in our time spent researching together and I’ve… I’ve grown fond of the lass. I would like to be there for her.”

“It should be done sooner rather than later,” Mary Margaret insists. “It would be cruel to keep this from her.”

David steps forward. “I’ll go with you. The library is already closed, she should be at home.”

Killian stands, and Emma reaches into her pocket to pull out the piece of paper Gold gave her before he died. Placing it in his hand, she closes his fingers around it and whispers, “Make sure she knows we’re all here if she needs anything.”

He looks down at his hand before his eyes move back up to hers. After a moment, he nods, gives her a light kiss and leaves the loft with David close behind him.

“We should do something,” Mary Margaret suggests after they are gone. “A plaque maybe… or his name added onto Neal’s stone.” There’s a pregnant silence and Mary Margaret mumbles, “Or if you think we shouldn’t…”

“No,” Regina starts with a sigh and stands tall. “You’re right. Gold was a lot of things, most of them horrible, and he hurt a lot of people… but this won’t be about him. It’ll be for Belle. We’ll let her decide.”

“That might be best,” Robin agrees.

The four decide that they’ll worry about Zelena later, and Regina stands, insisting on starting the memory potion, and Emma gets up with her.

“If it’s okay with you, Regina, I was wondering if Henry could stay with me tonight.”

“Of course, you haven’t seen him in over a week. I wouldn’t expect anything else.” 

Mary Margaret takes their used mugs and glasses off the kitchen island to put them in the sink, and Emma nods to the boys in the living room.

“Roland can stay here, too. He can keep Henry company and Mom can enroll him back in school tomorrow.”

Before the other adults can answer, Roland comes running into the kitchen. “Yes! Papa, can I stay with Henry?”

“Emma, I couldn’t possibly ask you to look after my son two nights in a row,” Robin says with a shake of his head and Regina looks to him in question. “The Sheriff insisted that Killian and I go out last night with her friend Oliver to let off some steam.”

Roland giggles. “Papa made funny noises as he slept.”

Emma chuckles. “I promise, it’s not a problem. Besides it’ll give you guys time to… catch up.” Robin blushes, while Regina’s eyes widen comically, making Emma scoff out a laugh. “Boys, why don’t you go into the kitchen, I think Mary Margaret has ice cream in the freezer!”

Both boys rush over to her mother and Emma steps forward. “So, uh, in New York, before Gold died, he told me that Walsh, Zelena’s monkey, used a potion on me, and I don’t know why, or what it did to me…” Emma motions to the man beside Regina. “Robin knows the name of it, but I was wondering if maybe you could help me figure it out?”

Regina blinks. “Of course.”

With a smile in thanks, Emma backs away and allows Henry and Roland to say goodbye to their parents.

* * *

Two hours later, after they’ve put Roland and Henry to bed, Emma and Mary Margaret are sitting in the living room when David and Killian return. They both look utterly exhausted, and before Emma can ask what happened, Killian’s pulling her up from the couch and pressing his lips against hers. 

“Mm, hey…” she mumbles as she softly pushes against his chest. “What’s—”

Killian looks her in the eyes and says, “I love you, Emma.”

Her eyes search his and her fingers lay over his heart.

_Thump, thump. Thump, thump._

“I love you, too.” Turning to see that her father has done the same thing with her mother, she asks, “What’s wrong?”

He closes his eyes and shakes his head while David answers, “She’s devastated.” Emma looks over to see David wrap his arm around Mary Margert before rubbing her back. “Completely heartbroken, we tried to comfort her, but…”

He trails off and Mary Margaret’s face crumples, tears welling in her eyes. “Poor Belle.”

“She’s going to need some time,” Killian whispers, pulling Emma deeper into his side. “I told her I would take care of the library in her absence.”

Rubbing his back, Emma gives him a smile and says, “That’s very kind of you.”

“It’s the least I could do, love.”

“We talked about maybe having a plaque or putting his name on Neal’s gravestone. Something for Belle,” Mary Maragret explains. 

“That’s nice,” David answers with a nod.

“Aye, though perhaps it would be best to do so at a later time.”

“Of course.”

Emma bites her bottom lip. “I don’t know if she should be alone. Maybe I should go over, just so someone is there?”

David and Mary Margaret exchange a look before they turn back to her. “Belle and Will Scarlet started seeing each other right after you left for your trip.”

Her brows shoot up. “Really?”

“Indeed, the little thief was there when we arrived. He was going to leave, but we thought it best he stayed,” Killian says.

“Oh,” Emma tilts her head. “Well, that’s… good?”

David chuckles. “My thoughts exactly.” 

* * *

The next morning, Emma and Killian help Snow make breakfast for the boys before school, and when Regina and Robin show up, they agree to look after Neal while Snow goes to the school to get Roland enrolled. 

Emma had originally wanted to go to work, but when she woke up, she found her father had already left without her, and while it made her grumble a little, she was grateful for the extra day off.

“Here,” Regina reaches into her pocket after Snow, Henry, Roland, and Robin walk out into the hall, and pulls out a vial full of purple liquid. “Robin said the potion Zelena had you drink was meant to heal a broken heart. Drink this, and whatever memories or feelings you lost will come back.”

“Oh, wow, um… you know you didn’t have to do this right away…”

Regina shrugs. “It wasn’t hard, and I already had all the equipment and ingredients out to make the memory potion for Roland.”

“Thank you,” Emma answers, holding the vial tightly in her fist. 

Regina presses her lips together, brushing her hair away from her face before taking a deep breath. “I should be the one thanking you.” Emma’s brow arches and Regina continues. “Thank you for taking Roland last night and thank you for sending Robin out to drink with Hook and your friend. He says it helped him work through his anger… and thank you for bringing him back. It means… everything.”

Emma smiles. “Yeah, well, it’s my fault Zelena came back in the first place, so…” She trails off, and there’s a moment where they say nothing before she changes the subject, “If the potion Walsh gave me was for healing a broken heart, why did it take away my memories?”

“I was wondering about that, too, but then I remembered something. Henry told me that when you lived in New York, he used to go to a tree and just stare at it. He said it made him feel happy and sad, but he didn’t know why until his memories were back. I think you may have had similar symptoms. Even though your memories of Storybrooke were gone, your feelings were still there, so in order for the potion to work, it had to take away the memories you had of feeling broken-hearted. But we won’t know for sure until you drink what’s in that vial.”

Emma nods. “That makes sense.”

“Call me and let me know if you need anything else.”

Regina leaves with a small wave, and Emma walks into the living room and sits on the couch, looking at the vial in her hand. She’s never really thought about the first couple of months in New York, before she met Walsh. But now she finds that when she tries, it’s almost like she’s watching a movie edited for TV—all the major info is there, but there are scenes that are missing.

Placing the vial on the coffee table, Emma sits back, bouncing her knee.

When Gold told her that Walsh had used a potion on her, she felt angry and violated. She really had been considering spending the rest of her life with him—before she found out that he was an evil monkey—because she fell in love with the man she thought she knew. Now, it seems that the only reason their relationship happened was because Walsh _forced_ her to feel that way without her knowledge. 

“Scarlet just rang me from Belle’s.” She snaps out of her thoughts and looks over to see Killian coming down from her room. “He says she’s going to keep the library closed today, and reopen tomorrow, but I wager it’ll still be too soon, especially once word gets around town. I’ll call her later and let her know my offer still stands to take care of it while she’s… handling the news.”

Emma rubs her hands on her thighs. “Sounds good.”

“Swan.” He waits until she looks back up to him and asks, “What’s wrong?”

Motioning to the vial, she explains, “Regina brewed me a cure for the potion Walsh gave me.”

Killian frowns. “A cure?”

She nods as he sits next to her. “Uh, yeah. Regina seems to think—and I kind of agree with her—that because I didn’t know what was causing me to be, well, _heartbroken_ , that in order for the potion to work, it had to take away the memories I had of feeling that way.”

“Are you going to take it?”

“Yes. I don’t like the fact that Walsh... changed something within me and I don’t know what it is.” She sighs and presses her lips together. “It’s just… this potion will literally re-break my heart, so to speak, and I have to prepare myself for that.”

“Well, I’m here for you.” Killian reaches out to place his hand over hers. “And I’ll help heal it again as best as I can.”

With a small smile, Emma presses a soft kiss to his lips and murmurs, “Thank you.” She leans forward to grab the vial and pops the top off. “Cheers.”

The liquid is surprisingly cold and takes like… raspberries, she thinks, but she doesn’t have time to think about it before a tidal wave of sadness hits her, and she lets out a gasp as one by one, her memories come back to her.

_She’s in New York and has just signed off on the lease for her new apartment, and her and Henry unlock the door, but it doesn’t feel like home._

_Henry and her are at the mall buying new furniture when she walks by the Disney store and sees the display in the window. It’s for the rerelease of Peter Pan on Blu Ray, and there’s a large cardboard cut out of the cartoon Pan flying through the air with his sword pointed downward to the cartoon Captain Hook. She stares at the hook of the animated man and feels an ache in her heart that she can’t explain._

_They go to a carnival, and in one of the games you have to shoot a bow and arrow at the target for a prize. When they walk by it, there’s a little girl stepping up to take her shot. Her short hair is black, and her mother calls her Mary, and when Emma looks at her, she yearns for more time, but she’s not sure what for._

_Emma goes to the supermarket and as the food is being rung up, the cashier asks if she’s making shepherd's pie. His hair is blonde, and when she looks at his name tag, she feels the cold hard stab on loneliness when she reads the name David._

_She goes to the farmer’s market with Henry to pick up some fresh produce for a fruit salad when a man bumps into her. His name is Walsh and he tries to use a ridiculous line on her. She blows him off and forgets about him as her and her son walk away._

_For the third night in a row, Emma wakes with a gasp and her heart pounding. All she can remember from the dream is the sparkle of gold around her and a male voice echoing off the walls as he screams her last name._

_She’s late for work when she runs into that creepy guy, Walsh, again. He stops to talk to her as if they are old friends and when she tries to walk away, he puts his arm out to stop her, bumping her coffee, causing it to spill on her hand. Walsh tries to give her a handkerchief to dry off and she feels empty inside._

_Emma’s at the zoo tailing a perp and when he enters the petting zoo area, she follows him discreetly. She’s standing by a fence watching him when she sees a sheep walk up to a little girl and sniff her hand. “You found me!” The little girl giggles. “You always find me!” The little girl hugs the sheep and Emma feels like a lost little orphan._

_The third time Walsh and her_ accidentally _run into each other, Emma freaks out on him. She accuses him of being a stalker and tells him to leave her the hell alone or she’ll have him arrested. He apologizes and tells her he just wants to get to know her. He tells her she’s beautiful and he’s okay with just being friends since he’s new to New York, but later he jokes about winning her heart and she feels a sense of longing for the words to be true… just not from him._

As each memory flashes through her mind, Emma whimpers, and by the time it’s all finished, she’s sobbing into her hands, tears streaming down her face. She remembers every bit of loneliness, every bit of heartbreak, and every bit of emptiness that she felt and couldn’t quite understand in the first couple months after the curse. 

She feels something touch her wrist, and her eyes snap up to find Killian looking at her, his face full of anguish, and she gasps.

“Hook!” Emma pulls him close and wraps her arms around his shoulders as she sobs. “I missed you so much!”

Pulling back, she cups his face and presses her lips to his before he can say anything in response. After the kiss, she buries her face in his neck and holds onto him as though her life depends on it—like the curse is still coming and her arms will keep him close, keep him from leaving her ever again. She tries to calm her sobs, but they just won’t stop, and soon, her chest feels tight and she can't breathe.

Killian gently pushes her away, and she frantically grips his shirt, whimpering as the material slips through her fingers.

“Emma, breathe. You have to breathe for me, darling.” She opens her mouth, sucking in a large gulp of air and coughs before Killian nods. “Good girl, now take another, this time through your nose and out slowly through your mouth.”

She closes her eyes to do so, but the second she does, visions of him disappearing and leaving her being alone flash through her mind, and she begins to hyperventilate again.

“No, no, Emma, look at me. Open your eyes.” Her eyes fly open and connect with his blue ones. “You’re having a panic attack, and I need you to keep your eyes on me, can you do that?” She nods and Killian smiles softly, his hand moving to cup her jaw. “Good. Now, breathe. You’re fine… we’re fine. I’m right here with you, just keep taking deep breaths and let it out slow.” Her breath is stuttering and there are still tears streaming down her face as she listens to his instructions. “Stay focused on me, okay, love? Keep breathing.”

It takes a few minutes, but eventually she can breathe normally, and her hands stop shaking.

“Good,” he whispers before leaning forward to kiss her forehead. “Good girl.” Killian reaches up to wipe at her wet cheeks as her sobs lessen, sighing in relief. “Well, that was probably the most terrifying thing I’ve ever experienced, and I’ve been around for hundreds of years.”

“I’m s-sorry.”

Killian’s face takes on a pained expression before he pulls her to his chest. “Bloody hell don’t be sorry, love. Don’t ever be sorry.”

Emma doesn’t say anything for a long time, just sits on the couch, enjoying the feel of Killian’s arms around her as she tries to come to terms with everything that was taken from her. 

“Do you want to tell me about it?”

“I always thought there was something wrong with me,” she starts in a whisper, and Killian’s brow furrows. “After the curse broke, Henry realized that he had found things in New York that made his heart ache even though he hadn’t known why… things that made him miss Regina and everyone else, but I never did. It’s probably why I was so adamant about returning to New York, because I couldn’t remember how much I missed everyone.”

“It’s alright, love, and you’re _not_ broken.”

Her face hardens. “No, Killian, don’t you get it? If Walsh had never given me that potion, I would have had that ache in my heart when you came for me in New York. I wouldn’t have fought my parents about staying here… I wouldn’t have fought _us_ , because I missed you _so_ much, despite not remembering you!”

“Emma, all that matters is that we are together now.”

“But I fought you for so long.”

“And it’s only made me love you more,” he insists, his lips spreading into a smile. “Don’t look back on our past with sorrow. It may not be the most… _traditional_ tale…”

“But we’ve never been ones for tradition,” she finishes, the right side of her mouth twitching into a smile. He reaches up to wipe away her fresh tears, and her gaze steadily meets his before she whispers, “I love you.”

Killian breathes out in a chuckle, his eyes closing for a second before he opens them again, bringing his lips to hers after answering, “I love you, too.”

* * *

A few weeks after they get back, Killian is living in his new home and Emma… kind of loves it. It’s a cozy, two-bedroom apartment with a balcony that looks over the docks, and she helps him decorate it with a healthy mix of modern and nautical elements. He gives Henry full reign over the guest bedroom, which means lots of comic book posters and action figures, and when Emma asks Killian if he’s sure he wants his guests to endure Captain America staring at them all night, he snorts.

“Who’s going to stay over, Mr. Smee?”

“What about when Oliver and Felicity come to visit next month?”

True to her word, Emma has made sure to keep in touch with friends as much as she can—she and Felicity usually end up talking a couple of times a week, while she and Oliver send each other stupid internet meme’s daily—as has Killian. At least once a week she walks into Killian’s apartment to find him on the phone with Oliver, and they’ve all had one or two skype sessions. It was during their last video chat that they made plans for the Queen’s to visit, and while Emma is excited to introduce them to her parents, she’s grateful to have a place for _just_ the four of them.

“I’m fairly certain it’ll be much better for them to stay at Granny’s considering they’ll have Mia, and she can have her own bed there.”

Emma doesn’t feel the need to argue with his logic, but she does tell Henry to not fill the room up with _too_ many superheroes. 

“It’s Killian’s guest bedroom, I don’t want him to be overwhelmed.” 

Henry just looks at her like she’s lost her mind, but ultimately agrees.

Once he’s fully settled in, Emma spends the majority of her free time at Killian’s apartment, along with most nights. In fact, she’s only slept at her parent’s dwelling twice since he bought his bed; once when she promised them that she’d babysit Neal and Killian had stayed with her, and once when they got into a stupid argument over her taking care of herself. She’d had a cold, but refused to rest, which he insisted on, and she snapped at him. The next morning, she’d still woken up with the cold, but feeling worse for the way she treated him. So, she’d sent him a text asking if she could rest at his place, and ten minutes later, he was there to pick her up, and nursed her back to full health.

It’s not like Emma had planned to spend most of her time there, it’s just easier (not to mention nicer to be able to makeout with her boyfriend without her father walking in), and recently she’s realized that most of the possessions that she uses daily are at his place.

_I should probably bring them back soon,_ she thinks halfheartedly.

Locking her car door, Emma picks up the pizza off the roof of the bug and heads into Killian’s building. She had to work a little later at the station to finish some paperwork, so he picked Henry up from school, and as a thank you, she offered to bring dinner. 

Even if the smell of sardines on one half of the pizza makes her nose wrinkle.

She walks into the apartment to find Henry and Killian in the kitchen, both smiling, with open textbooks on the table.

“Dinner’s here.”

Henry jumps up from his seat, and she braces herself for a hug, but instead, her son grabs the pizza box from her and rushes back to the kitchen.

“I’m _starving_.”

With a mock frown, she looks to Killian, who has moved toward her, and her frown deepens as he laughs. 

“Do I get at least a hello from you?” She can’t help smiling when he presses his lips to hers. “Hi.”

“Hello, love.”

Shrugging her coat off, Emma hangs it on the hook next to Killian’s leather jacket and follows her boys into the kitchen.

“How was school?” 

Henry responds, but it’s with a mouth full of cheesy pizza.

Emma sighs. “Don’t talk with your mouth full.”

She sits down across from him, next to Killian, and waits as he swallows his food before looking up at her with a smile.

“We had a pop quiz in math, and I passed! There were only like, five of us in the _whole_ class that did.”

“I guess it’s a good thing that we studied last night, eh lad?” Killian asks with a wink after he takes his own slice of pizza. 

Emma smirks as her son rolls his eyes and continues to tell them about the quiz. It’s just as he’s explaining what he considered the hardest question that her phone goes off. Pulling it from her back pocket, her lips lift into a smile when she sees a text from Felicity and swipes it open. 

**OMG I’m totally getting this for your new place!**

Attached to the message is a picture of a decorative sign with a skull and swords that reads _Jolly Roger Pirates,_ and Emma snorts before showing it to Killian. 

“Did you get a new place?”

She frowns and pulls her phone back to look at the message again. “What? No. It’s Felicity… it’s a joke.”

“Aye, but she says she’s going to buy it for your new place.” She frowns and Killian smiles. “Did you get a new place?”

She rolls her eyes. “No, she means here, for your place.”

His smirk widens. “But why would she say that it was for _your_ new place if it’s supposed to be for _my_ place?”

Her mouth falls open and her eyes move to Henry—who is intensely concentrating on his chewing—before returning to Killian.

“Well…”

His eyebrow arches, and she opens and closes her mouth a couple times before he tilts his head and asks, “Swan, have you moved in?”

“What?! No!” 

Now both of his eyebrows raise questioningly, and she looks around the kitchen. Her mug from earlier that morning sits next to Killian’s in the drying rack, which is next to the bowl of sugar that’s just for her, because she likes some sweetness in her coffee. There’s a calendar on the fridge marked with important dates for both of them, and the hoodie she wore last night is still hanging on the back of one of the kitchen chairs. Looking out toward the living room, she catches sight of her slippers next to the coffee table and her throw blanket on the back of the couch. Though she can’t see it, she knows in the bathroom there’s a toothbrush and hairbrush next to his own things, and in the bedroom, his drawers hold more of her clothes than the dresser at her parent’s. She knows this because when she went to their loft the other day, she realized she had forgotten the shirt she wanted to wear at Killian’s and couldn’t find a replacement.

Looking back to her amused pirate, she whispers, “I think I did.”

Henry rolls his eyes and stands with his plate in his hand, grumbling, “I’m going to my room.”

Emma wants to correct him and tell him it’s Killian’s _guest_ _bedroom_ , but he’s right. It’s been his room since Killian offered it to him when he first moved in.

She bites her lip and asks, “Are you mad?”

Killian snorts before turning toward her, pulling her chair between his legs and leaning forward.

“Not at all. In fact, I’m bloody ecstatic.” He moves to brush his nose against hers, a wide, brilliant smile painting his face. “Though, traditionally, both parties are aware of moving in with each other.”

A small giggle passes her lips and she moves forward to place a searing kiss on his mouth. “It’s a good thing we’ve never been traditional.”


End file.
